GRANTHAM, Pa. - The No. 14 Messiah men's volleyball team is heading to the NCAA Tournament for the first-time in program history. The Falcons advanced to the Tournament by way of a 3-2, come-from-behind victory in the MAC Championship Match over Stevenson to claim the first MAC Championship in program history as well. Messiah is scheduled to play the Fontbonne Griffins in the First Round of the Tournament on Wednesday, April 21 at noon in Salem, Va.
With only 12 teams remaining in the country, the NCAA Tournament will take place over four days in Salem, Va. with a National Champion being crowned on Saturday night at the Salem Civic Center.
There are four games scheduled for Wednesday's First Round with four teams already advancing to the Second Round after earning a bye. The winner of the Messiah vs. Fontbonne First Round Match will take on the top-seeded Carthage Firebirds on Thursday at noon.
See below for a quick preview of the six teams participating on Messiah's side of the bracket as well as some basic information on the other six teams in the NCAA Tournament:
Messiah's Side of the Bracket
Location - Grantham PA
Coach -
Justin Beachy (Fourth Year)
NCAA Tournament Appearance - First
Best NCAA Finish - n/a
How They Got Here - The Falcons appear in the NCAA Tournament for the first time in program history with a thrilling come-from behind victory over Stevenson in the Conference Championship. The Falcons have put together their strongest year in program history with a 16-2 overall record. The Falcons dropped regular season matches against Stevenson (3-0 on Mar. 10) and Alvernia (3-2 on Mar. 24), but avenged both of those with wins in the Conference semifinal (Alvernia) and Championship (Stevenson) to advance to their first NCAA Tournament in program history.
Messiah is led by All-Americans Mason Nissley (First Team - outside hitter),
Matt Knab (First Team - setter), and
Nate Bowman (Second Team - middle hitter). Nissley was named the Regional Player of the Year and is averaging a nation-high 5.75 kills per set.
Location - St. Louis, MO
Coach - Jimmy Stika (First Year)
NCAA Tournament Appearance - Second (2019), 1-1 Tournament Record
Best NCAA Finish - National Quarterfinals (2019)
How They Got Here - The Fontbonne Griffins are making their second-straight trip to the NCAA Tournament after winning the Midwest Collegiate Volleyball League with a 3-1 victory over Mount Union. The Griffins have won 14 of their last 15 matches with their only setbacks of the season against Augustana (3-0 on Feb. 9) and Mount St. Joseph (3-2 on Mar. 27). Freshman outside hitter Ryan Lively leads the Griffins.
Lively was named a Second Team All-American, the first such honor the program has ever picked up. Lively has tallied a program record 307 kills and a 4.65 kills per set average on a .348 hitting percentage with 110 digs.
Location - Kenosha, WI
Coach - JW Kieckhefer (Second Year)
NCAA Tournament Appearance - Sixth (2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2019), 3-5 Tournament Record
Best NCAA Finish - National Runner-Up (2012)
How They Got Here -The lone undefeated team left in the Tournament, Carthage has been fantastic all season long (and fantastic may be putting it mildly). The Firebirds have dropped only one set all year, earning clean 3-0 sweeps in 19 of their 20 matches. The lone team to force a fourth set was Aurora on Mar. 5. The Spartans took the first set from the Firebirds, but since then, Carthage has claimed 39-straight sets to finish the season and claim the CCIW Conference Title with a 3-0 sweep of Augustana on Apr. 10. The Firbirds are led by four All-Americans with
Zach Bulthuis, Gene McNulty, and Matt Slivinski all named First Team and Carer Schmidt picking up an Honorable Mention nod.
Location - River Forest, IL
Coach - Cameron Andrew (Fourth Year)
NCAA Tournament Appearance - Third (2017, 2018), 2-2 Tournament Record
Best NCAA Finish - National Semifinal (2018)
How They Got Here - The Stars have been stellar this season, bosting a 16-1 overall record heading into the NCAA Tournament. Their lone setback came against fellow NCAA Tournament Team Benedictine (IL) on Feb. 25 in a back-and-forth five setter. Since then the Stars have dropped just one set and avenged that loss in the NACC Championship Match with a 3-0 sweep of the Eagles to punch their ticket to the NCAA Tournament.
The Stars are led by All-Americans George Kougan (First Team) and Jack McGuire (Second Team).
Location - Poughkeepsie, NY
Coach - Richard Gary (Fifth Year)
NCAA Tournament Appearance - Third (2017, 2018), 1-2 Tournament Record
Best NCAA Finish - National Semifinal (2018)
How They Got Here - The Vassar Brewers are coming off a thrilling victory over the SUNY New Paltz Hawks in the UVC Championship Game. After dropping two of the three regular-season meetings against the Hawks, the Brewers picked up a 3-1 victory in the Conference Championship game to punch their ticket to the NCAA Tournament for the third time in program history. The Brewers have only played 11 matches against four different teams this season, but two of those teams were ranked in the top-10 for the entirety of the season accounting for five of their victories and two of their losses.
Vassar is led by Andrew Kim (First Team) and Colin Jones (Second Team), who were both named All-Americans on Monday.
Location - Hiram, OH
Coach - Kevin Kustura
NCAA Tournament Appearance - First
Best NCAA Finish - n/a
How They Got Here - The Hiram Terriers are making their first appearance in the NCAA Tournament in program history after defeating Penn State Behrend 3-2 in come-from-behind fashion. The Terriers enter the Tournament on a nine-match winning streak after falling 3-0 against Wittenberg in their second match of the season on Mar. 3.
Hiram is led by Tom Supan the AMCC Player of the Year along with fellow All-Conference honorees Dangelo Boehner, Kilvio Montero, and Cory Fischer.
The Other Side of the the Bracket
Location - Buena Vista, VA
Coach - Tom Peterson (Fifth Year)
NCAA Tournament Appearance - Second (2019), 0-1 Tournament Record
Best NCAA Finish - First Round (2019)
How They Got Here - Champion of the Continental Volleyball Conference - 3-2 victory over Juniata in the Title Match
Location - Boston, MA
Coach - Evin Giglio (10th Year)
NCAA Tournament Appearance - Third (2016, 2017), 2-2 Tournament Record
Best NCAA Finish - National Semifinal (2017)
How They Got Here - Selected as a Pool C at-large bid
Location - Jersey City, NJ
Coach - Carlo Edra (Second Year)
NCAA Tournament Appearance - First
Best NCAA Finish - n/a
How They Got Here - Champion of the Skyline Conference - 3-2 victory over St. Joseph's - Long Island in the Title Match
Location - Lancaster, PA
Coach - Jade Brubaker (Eighth Year)
NCAA Tournament Appearance - Second (2018) 1-1 Tournament Record
Best NCAA Finish - National Quarterfinals (2018)
How They Got Here - Selected as a Pool B at-large bid
Location - Lisle, IL
Coach - Christian Staple (First Year)
NCAA Tournament Appearance - First
Best NCAA Finish - n/a
How They Got Here - Selected as a Pool C at-large bid
Location - Beverly, MA
Coach - George Chapell (Ninth Year)
NCAA Tournament Appearance - Seventh (2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2019), 2-6 Tournament Record
Best NCAA Finish - National Quarterfinals (2014, 2019)
How They Got Here - New England Collegiate Conferece Champions - 3-0 victory over Elms in the Title Match
