NEW YORK, NY - On Sunday, April 13, the #1 New York University men's volleyball team defeated #15 Nazareth University by scores of 25-21, 26-24, 25-16 to claim the 2025 UVC Conference Championship match from the John A. Paulson Athletic Center. NYU claims the UVC's automatic berth into the Division III NCAA men's volleyball tournament. They enter the postseason ranked No. 1 in the country with a 25-0 record. Nazareth falls to 19-11 on the season.
NYU won its second straight UVC Championship and third in program history. The Violets became just the second UVC team to win back-to-back titles, joining Nazareth, who won the first three UVC Championships from 2011-13.
Emerson Evans led the team on offense, posting an impressive 13 kills, while hitting .522 to earn UVC Championship Tournament Most Valuable Player honors. He had 19 in the semifinal win over New Paltz on Saturday and hit .474 in the two UVC Tournament contests.
Lucas Osiecki followed with 11 kills, he also had three aces in the match. Devyn Nguyen led the team recording 33 assists in the match. On defense, Buddy Cohen was a force with four blocks, Ry Kagan followed with three. Zach Knudsen held down serve receive and defense with his seven digs.
The first set saw NYU establish an early lead, up by five before reaching ten points. The Golden Flyers were able to chip away at the deficit but couldn't contest the Violets. Of the last six points, five were Violet's kills, demonstrating NYU's control of the set. Devyn Nguyen was active at the net, attacking the ball on the second contact which kept Nazareth on their toes.
The Golden Flyers came back with new energy in the second staying within a point of the Violets throughout the set. Tied at 24, Lucas Osiecki got a kill and then Luke Boyer closed the second with a kill assisted by Osiecki.
The final set displayed the dominance of NYU's 2025 squad. The teams remained neck and neck until at 10-all when the Violets went on a six-point run. Cohesion from NYU combined with the Golden Flyers' errors made it hard for Nazareth to come back from the deficit. The championship was secured with a solo block from Ry Kagan in the middle.
"It was a hard-fought match, we had to scrap and fight. This was a testament to the hard work that the guys put in and everything they have accomplished over these last four years. When we move on to the next stage, hopefully, they will continue this," said Head Coach José Piña.
If it is the last game for the Golden Flyers, the illustrious career of Owen Wickens will have him as all-time leader at Nazareth in kills (1,508), attack attempts (3,470), and service aces (308), while he sits third in digs (799), fourth in sets played (436), and ninth in assists (799).
For the final season for head coach Cal Wickens, he sits at 436 wins on the men's side and 407 on the women's side.
Wickens, Murphy and Bertino all finished with seven kills. Bodensteiner hit .571 with five kills on seven attempts, while AJ Burda had 22 assists.
NYU will await who its opponent will be as the NCAA Division III Men's Volleyball Championship selection show airs Monday morning, April 14 at 10 a.m. on www.ncaa.com. Vassar College and St. John Fisher University sit ninth and 12th, respectively, in the NCAA National Power Index, await possible at-large berths.
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