PRINCETON, N.J. – The Queens University of Charlotte men's volleyball team faced a tough opponent in No. 18 Princeton, and despite strong individual performances, they fell in their first 3-0 loss of the season (18-25, 20-25, 20-25) at Dillon Gym in Princeton, N.J. The Royals drop to 5-3 on the season.
SET ONE
Princeton set the tone early, hitting an impressive .611 in the opening frame. Queens struggled to match their efficiency, but still finishing with a .200 hitting percentage. Carson Strawbridge led the Royals with three kills in the frame, while Reed Shuey contributed defensively with two blocks. Despite keeping the score close in the early stages, Queens couldn't come back from Princeton's attack.
SET TWO
The second set featured nine ties as the Royals battled to gain momentum, earning a 4-1 lead off the start. Nathan Vaupel delivered an impactful service ace, and Shuey continued to shine at the net with a block and two kills in the set. However, Princeton capitalized on late errors from Queens to secure the set and take a 2-0 match lead.
SET THREE
Queens pushed for a comeback in the third set, led by Strawbridge, who added three more kills to his tally, and Chance Shampine, who contributed on both ends with three digs and two kills. Despite their efforts, Princeton's Mason Rice proved too dominant, finishing with 15 kills and sealing the match for the Tigers.
"Tough match today, but I thought our middles did really well," Head Coach Jeremy Price said. "Nathan Vaupel did a great job from the service line and also blocking for us… Reed Shuey was efficient for us as well and then added a couple blocks. I give Princeton a lot of credit, they were very well prepared for us. I hope we were able to get what we needed out of this match to get us prepared for conference play."
ROYAL RUNDOWN
UP NEXT
The Royals next take on Catawba on Thursday, Jan 30 inside the Levine Center.
SOCIAL MEDIA
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