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Changes are coming to Princeton’s non-conference schedule for the upcoming season with more Midwest teams traveling to Dillon Gym.
Princeton coach Sam Shweisky said earlier this week in an interview with Off the Block that his team will play home non-conference matches against Ball State and IPFW during the 2014 season.
This is the first time Princeton and IPFW will play each other in their program history. In addition, it is the second meeting between Princeton and Ball State as the Cardinals won their first meeting in 2011.
“It will be good to play those guys. We played Ball State my second year here and we didn’t have a strong team here and Ball State was pretty strong,” Shweisky said. “We have a stronger team now and it’s going to be fun to play them.”
Princeton finished last season reaching the EIVA Tournament semifinals for the second consecutive year and received votes in the national coaches poll throughout the season.
Ball State during the 2013 season had its first 20-win season in five years and ended at No. 11 in the national coaches poll. IPFW last season upset several nationally ranked teams in the regular season before losing to Ball State in the MIVA Tournament quarterfinals.
The Ball State and IPFW matches will be part of a homestand for Princeton on Feb. 7-8.
This will be the most home matches Princeton has scheduled against the MIVA since becoming a varsity sport. The Tigers also enter this season having never defeated a MIVA opponent in their program history, including losing road matches to Loyola and Lewis last year.
Shweisky said his team is optimistic entering the upcoming season and is looking forward to its non-conference schedule. The coach also said with a majority of their starter returning the Tigers will be competitive against all its 2013 opponents.
“We try to raise the bar every year and push and improve,” he said. “We’d like to push and go to a Final Four. That’s our main goal every year.”