Bridgewater, NJ -- Two straight NEC men’s volleyball championships have put Daemen squarely in the spotlight as the Wildcats chase a three-peat in 2026, but a familiar challenger is eager to end the run.

Daemen and three-time defending NEC regular season Saint Francis – who have met in each of the last two NEC Tournament finals - tied for the top spot in the annual preseason poll conducted by the league’s head coaches. Daemen received three first place votes and Saint Francis garnered two.
 
NEC tournament semifinalists LIU and FDU received one first place vote each, finishing third and fourth in the poll, respectively. Newcomers Manhattan and UMES were slotted fifth and sixth, with D’Youville rounding out the seven-team poll.
 
After leading the Wildcats to the program’s second consecutive NEC title, second-year head coach Darek Przybyl brings back some key contributors from the 2025 squad that won it all. Redshirt senior outside hitter Billy Wieberg (Grand Island, N.Y./Grand Island) returns for Daemen after earning NEC Tournament MVP honors and All-NEC Second Team recognition last season. He finished the year ranked eighth in the league in kills per set (2.89) and seventh in hitting percentage (.276).

Senior libero Kyle Zelasko (West Seneca, NY/Orchard Park) and junior setter Jariel Giraud (Orlando, FL/Lake Nona) add to Daemen’s returning core after also earning All-NEC Second Team honors last season. Zelasko was second in the NEC in digs per set (1.94), while Giraud ranked second in assists per set (9.15), including a match-high 36 in the NEC final last spring.
 
Longtime head coach and three-time NEC Coach of the Year Mike Rumbaugh has guided Saint Francis to three straight NEC regular-season titles and three consecutive trips to the NEC final. He returns key pieces in 2025 NEC Rookie of the Year Kyle Charles (Lititz, PA/Warwick) and All-NEC First Team outside hitter Brady Stump (York, PA/York Suburban). A unanimous choice as the Rookie of the Year, Charles was named NEC Rookie of the Week a league record 11 times last season. The Lititz, PA native led the NEC and ranked 15th nationally in assists per set (9.97). Stump, a senior, finished seventh on the circuit in kills per set (2.92) and 10th in hitting percentage (.232).
 
Fresh off a semifinal appearance last spring, second year LIU head coach Justin Beaumont brings back senior outside hitter Kale Spencer (Kula, Maui, HI/Pukalani) and junior setter Roei Horovitz (Be’er Sheva, Israel/Hof Hasharon), both of whom were All-NEC first team selections last year. Spencer led the NEC in both kills (4.07) and points per set (4.70), while ranking fourth in hitting percentage (.312). Horovitz was fourth in assists per set (7.76) and sixth in digs per set (1.63).
 
FDU head coach Karl France returns a pair of All-NEC second team honorees in senior opposite Jamal Ellis (Bayamón, Puerto Rico/Academia Discípulos de Cristo) and senior outside hitter Dylan McFadden (Farmington, N.Y./Victor Senior). Ellis, a three-time NEC all-star and two-time first teamer, finished fifth in the league in kills per set (3.21) and sixth in points per set (3.73) a year ago. McFadden ranked seventh in digs per set (1.58), and was ninth in both kills (2.84) and points per set (3.30). The Knights have reached the NEC semis in each of the last two seasons.
 
Associate members Manhattan and UMES are competing in the program’s inaugural men’s volleyball season and will be immediately eligible for the 2026 NEC Men’s Volleyball Championship.

Chris Schortgen was announced as the first head coach in the history of the Manhattan men’s volleyball program on October 10, 2024. He has assembled a 15-player roster, including 12 freshmen, for the Jaspers’ inaugural campaign.
 
Dr. Anitra Brockman was selected to lead the UMES program in June, 2024. Her initial roster features 18 student-athletes, 12 of whom are freshmen.
 
D’Youville returns junior outside hitter Ethan Robinson (Scarborough, Ontario/Neil McNeil). Robinson ranked third on the Saints in both kills per set (1.96) and points per set (2.28) in 2025.
 
NEC play begins on February 26 and the NEC Men's Volleyball Tournament will take place from April 24-25 at the high seed. Four teams will vie for the championship.

About The NEC

Now in its 45th season, the NEC is an NCAA Division I collegiate athletic association consisting of ten institutions of higher learning located throughout six states. Media coverage of the NEC extends to a number of the largest markets in the United States including New York (#1), Chicago (#3), Boston (#9). Hartford/New Haven (#32) and Syracuse (#88). Founded in 1981 as the basketball-only ECAC Metro Conference, the NEC has grown to sponsor 25 championship sports for men and women and now enjoys automatic access to 16 different NCAA Championships. NEC full member institutions include Central Connecticut, Chicago State, FDU, Le Moyne, LIU, Mercyhurst, New Haven, Saint Francis U, Stonehill and Wagner. For more information on the NEC, visit the league’s official website (www.necsports.com) and digital network (www.necfrontrow.com), or follow the league on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Instagram and TikTok, all @NECsports.