United Volleyball Conference | 1/13/2020 10:32:48 PM

SUNY New Paltz will look to defend its United Volleyball Conference and NCAA Division III Men’s Volleyball Championships, as the 2020 season gets underway on Jan. 15, with Vassar College kicking off play in California. All nine teams are in action the weekend of Jan. 17-19. The top six teams will advance to the 2020 UVC Championship Tournament, which will take place at the home of the regular season champion and top-seed on April 9-11. The UVC Champion will receive an automatic berth into the 2020 NCAA Division III Men’s Volleyball Championship.
   
Tyler Anderson, Elmira, Fr., RS, Bellmore, NY/John F. Kennedy – Anderson was a four-time Nassau County Class B Champion, two-time Long Island Champion and won a New York State Division 2 Championship in 2018. Anderson was named the Newsday All-Long Island Nassau County Player of the Year as a senior.
 
Josh Bigford, St. John Fisher, So., OH, Cicero, NY/Cicero-North Syracuse – Bigford, the 2019 UVC Rookie of the Year, will look to enjoy an even better sophomore season after slamming 421 kills to go along with 193 digs and 56 blocks last year .
 
Sean Dillon, Nazareth, Sr., MB, Clifton Park, NY/Shenendehowa – Dillon slammed 104 kills, while hitting .261 to go along with 48 blocks in 2019.
 
Matthew Grace, SUNY New Paltz, Sr., S, Holbrook, NY/Sachem North – Grace earned 2019 UVC First Team accolades and AVCA Second Team All-American honors after leading the league with 1,238 assists and 11.25 assists per set. He enters the season 300 assists shy of the career record at New Paltz.
 
Tristan Kozul, Bard, Sr., OH, South Kingstown, RI/South Kingstown – Kozul led Bard in kills, blocks and aces in 2019, was second in assists and second in digs. He has played libero, setter and outside hitter in his career at Bard and will likely play all three in 2020 as well.
 
Evan Lindley, NYU, Sr., OPP, Evanston, IL/Evanston Township – Lindley was a 2019 UVC First Team selection after slamming 255 kills to go along 51 service aces. He was second in service aces per set among all UVC players and sixth in points per set (3.59).
 
Thomas Nelson, MIT, Sr., L/OH, San Ramon, CA/Doughtery Valley – Nelson is looking for his third straight UVC Libero/Defensive Specialist of the Year Award in 2020. He also earned 2018 AVCA Division III All-American honors. Nelson recorded a career-high total of 149 kills to go along with 204 digs in 2019.
 
Kevin Ros, Vassar, Sr., OH, Bridgewater, NJ/Bridgewater Raritan – Ros slammed 263 kills to go along with a team-best .280 hitting percentage. He was also second on the team in points per set (2.91), assists (318) and service aces (33) to earn 2019 UVC Honorable Mention accolades.
 
Scott Sanders, Sage, Sr., MH, Los Angeles, CA/Taft – Sanders was the 2018 UVC and E8 Rookie of the Year, while earning UVC Honorable Mention accolades that season. Last year, he hit .369 with a team-best 180 kills.
   
SUNY New Paltz – 64 Points (8 First Place Votes)
SUNY New Paltz, the defending NCAA Champions, are looking for their third national title in the last four seasons. The Hawks are the top-ranked team in the 2020 AVCA Division III Men’s Volleyball Preseason poll. New Paltz returns 17 players from last season’s championship squad, including senior setter Matthew Grace, who earned AVCA Second Team All-American honors after dishing out 1,238 assists in 2019. Fellow senior Aaron Carrk was the 2019 NCAA Tournament Most Outstanding Player and a Second Team All-UVC selection. Senior middle blocker Nick O’Malley returns after garnering All-UVC second team accolades, while classmate Robert Nolan will help lead the defensive unit. New Paltz enters the season having won 10 straight matches.
 
NYU – 54 Points (1 First Place Vote)
NYU enters the season ranked No. 13 in the 2020 AVCA Division III Men’s Volleyball Preseason poll. The Violets return 14 players from last season’s squad and its entire starting nucleus, including senior Evan Lindley. Lindley was a 2019 All-UVC First Team selection after slamming 255 kills to go along with 51 service aces. Fellow senior Alex Li is back after slamming 246 kills a season ago, while senior middle blocker Neil Ferraro  hit .400 with 194 kills and 90 blocks. Senior setter Matin Bikdeli will also be counted on to lead the offensive attack for head coach Jose Pina, who begins his 27th season as head coach of the Violets. Seven seniors will provide leadership for NYU in 2020.
 
St. John Fisher – 48 Points
St. John Fisher returns sophomore outside hitter Josh Bigford, who was named the 2019 UVC Rookie of the Year. Bigford tied for the UVC lead with 421 kills and was third with 3.99 points per set. Stephen England was named the UVC Coach of the Year after leading the Cardinals to 21 wins and a berth in the UVC Semifinals. Junior setter Paul Hackford, junior libero David Cerqua and sophomore middle blocker Ivan Lopez will also be counted on to lead St. John Fisher in 2020. Lopez led the UVC with 138 blocks last season, while Cerqua was the league leader with 324 digs.
 
Vassar – 44 Points
Vassar returns 13 players from last season, including 2019 UVC Honorable Mention selection Kevin Ros. Ros started all 29 matches for the Brewers in 2019, recording 263 kills to go along with 318 assists and 33 service aces. He will be expected to serve as Vassar’s top outside hitter in 2020. Junior opposite hitter Jeff Waters, junior middle blocker Ryan Duchemin and sophomore libero Matt Usui will also be expected to provide strong play and leadership for Vassar.
 
MIT – 37 Points
MIT returns 13 players from last season’s team that finished 23-9 overall and advanced to the UVC Tournament. Despite the losses of 2019 AVCA Division III All-American Skyler Kaufman and two-time UVC selection Yize Dong, the Engineers have tremendous septh, highlighted by senior Thomas Nelson, a two-time UVC Libero/Defensive Specialist of the Year. Graduate student Jacob Gasparich and senior Steven Timberman will also be counted on to lead the way for MIT in 2020.
 
Elmira – 27 Points
Elmira will be looking to return to the UVC Tournament after last making the postseason in 2018. An eight-man freshman class should help carry the load for the team this season. First-year Tyler Anderson should step into a major role immediately for the Soaring Eagles after a storied prep career at John F. Kennedy High School in Bellmore, NY. He will help replace the production lost from Ryan McDonough at the net. Seniors Landon Miller and Garrett Coleman will be counted on to provide steady leadership.
 
Nazareth – 27 Points
Nazareth won 15 matches in 2019 and has seven players returning. After missing the UVC playoffs for the first time in 2019, Nazareth looks to regroup with a strong nucleus, including 6-foot-10 Joe Crosby and 6-foot-7 Sean Dillon in the middle. Antonio Sargent provides athleticism as an outside hitter and Luis Vazquez is an experienced libero. 
 
Sage – 15 Points
Sage returns nine players, including five starters from the 2019 team that won 11 matches. Seniors Shane Wenz and Scott Sanders, along with Jennings are all climbing the program's career record book. Jennings is currently third with 1,118 career setting assists in just two seasons. Wenz is third with his 173 career total blocks, while also ranking ninth with his 400 career kills and seventh with his 550.5 career points. Sanders is 10th with 365 kills, while also ranking ninth with his 112 career total blocks.
 
Bard – 8 Points
The Raptors return five starters from last season’s squad, including senior Tristan Kozul, who led Bard in kills, blocks and aces in 2019, was second in assists and second in digs. He has played libero, setter and outside hitter in his career at Bard and will likely play all three in 2020 as well. Bard will look for contributions from libero Colin Schroeder, along with middle blockers Radoslav Skular and Joshua Han.
 
Final 2019 UVC Standings
Stevens (26-5, 8-1 UVC) *
SUNY New Paltz (26-7, 8-1 UVC) – League Champions/National Champions
St. John Fisher (20-11, 7-2 UVC)
NYU (13-10, 6-3 UVC)
MIT (23-9, 5-4 UVC)
Vassar (14-15, 5-4 UVC)
Nazareth (15-11, 3-6 UVC)
Elmira (13-18, 2-7 UVC)
Sage (11-16, 1-8 UVC)
Bard (2-16, 0-9 UVC)
 
*Stevens moved to the MAC Freedom Conference effective for the 2020 season
 
ABOUT THE UNITED VOLLEYBALL CONFERENCE
The United Volleyball Conference (UVC) is a volleyball-specific conference that features nine member institutions. The conference was founded in 2010 and began play in January of 2011. The UVC holds fair play and respect among its competitors to the highest regard and seeks to distinguish itself among its peer group for its quality institutions, spirited and sportsmanlike competition, outstanding services and highly ethical policies and practices.
 
For more on the UVC visit www.theuvc.org