Five Days, Six Teams

If you read yesterday's entry, you know that TigerBlog was talking about the time he and Tom McCarthy went to Hawaii for Princeton men's basketball.

They were there 20 years ago this week. As TB said yesterday, he's not sure if it seems like that long ago or not.

One thing he forgot to include is that while Tom has moved on to be the TV play-by-play voice of the Philadelphia Phillies, as well as an announcer for the NFL and college basketball, TigerBlog is now doing games with Patrick McCarthy, Tom's son. Again, he's not sure if that makes 20 years ago seem longer or shorter.

Anyway, there are five days left in the calendar year of 2018, and there are nine Princeton athletic events still to be played in those five days featuring six different teams.

TigerBlog knew about five of those teams. He didn't realize the men's volleyball team is also playing this week.

The Tigers open their season with a trip to California, beginning at Pepperdine Sunday and then at UCLA Tuesday, with New Year's Eve and New Year's Day in between.

The men's volleyball team is one that is eagerly ready to turn the page to 2019 and see what the season has in store, especially since the Tigers, for the first time ever, are the preseason favorite in the EIVA.

Of course, just rolling the balls out won't exactly get it done. If anything, the preseason poll that has Princeton in the top spot is a sign that those in the know are expecting a fairly wide-open season, especially when you consider that two teams - George Mason and Penn State - received more first-place votes than the Tigers.

The EIVA playoffs aren't until April 18 and 20, so there's a long, long time until the preseason poll unfolds into what actually will play out. And hey, in the meantime, there's a trip to Southern California for New Year's.

In addition to men's volleyball, there are five other teams who will be competing between now and when the ball drops in Times Square. Of those five, three are on the road - the men's basketball team (at 17th-ranked Arizona State, who just beat previously No. 1 Kansas, Saturday at 2 on the Pac 12 Network), the women's basketball team (at New Hampshire Saturday at 1) and the wrestling team (at the prestigious Midlands Tournament Saturday and Sunday at Northwestern).

As for the home games, they're all hockey, one a day for four straight days beginning tomorrow.

It starts with the men's team, who hosts Maine tomorrow and Saturday, both at 7. Then it's the women's team's turn, with two games against Merrimack Sunday and Monday, both at 3.

By the way, during this week, more than any other time of the year, nobody has any idea what day of the week it actually is.

When last you saw the Princeton women, they were sweeping RPI and Union to push their unbeaten streak to a school-record-tying 12 straight games and maintain their No. 6 national ranking.

And that, friends is the rest of the 2018 schedule.

Since an average calendar year at Princeton features approximately 700 athletic events, the overwhelming majority of things that have happened in 2018 have already occured. As is always the case at the end of the year, TigerBlog will give you his thoughts on the top stories in Princeton Athletics the next two days, or at least tomorrow and Monday.

In some years, the No. 1 story is pretty obvious. In others, there are several contenders.

This year? There are two. You can probably figure them out, and you can have your own opinion on which one should be No. 1. TB is going back and forth trying to decide what he thinks, and he might not have it settled until he hits the "publish" button.

In addition to the year in review, there will also be some countdown of the top pictures from Princeton Athletic games from 2018. On this one, TB is absolutely sure what should be No. 1, though he has about 15 more that are tied for No. 2.

You'll be able to find those on social media, and you'll be able to find the top stories countdown right here starting tomorrow. 

And then that'll be it for 2018.