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Coach Jeremy Price is utilizing transfers and traditional high school recruits fill out his roster for Queens’ inaugural season.
Queens recently announced that two transfers, a graduate transfer and three incoming freshmen have committed to play for the first-year program in 2018.
“I am really excited about adding this group of six athletes to the inaugural Queens men’s volleyball team,” Price said in a statement. “This is an accomplished group from all over the country and the world. It is a unique mix of talent, experience, and youth that I am excited to get into the gym and begin to build a foundation of academic and athletic excellence.”
Jake Dube, Gregory Esquivel and Hunter Gray all transfer to the Royals bringing NCAA experience.
Dube, an outside attacker from Altamont, New York, is a graduate student who played the last two seasons with Juniata. He played in 16 matches and had a 1.04 kills per game average last season as he helped Juniata reach the Division III NCAA Tournament quarterfinals.
Esquivel as libero at Coker last season appeared in 10 matches and had a 1.50 digs per game average. The incoming sophomore also was a first-team all-conference selection for his high school team in California.
Gray joins Queens after playing one season for Pfeiffer, which disbanded its program at the conclusion of the 2017 season. The setter ended last season 10th in the ConfCarolinas with a 7.18 assists per game average and contributed a 1.21 digs per game average.
Along with these transfer players, Cody Nix, Tristan Santoyo and Marco Vecellio will play for the Royals.
Nix, an outside attacker from Sierra Vista, Arizona, earned first-team all-region and third-team all-state honors with his high school team. In addition, Nix played club volleyball for 52Zero.
Santoyo, from Diamond Bar, California, was selected as the team player award recipient for his high school.
Vecellio, an outside attacker from San Quirino, Italy, led his team to a fourth-place finish at the 2016 World University Championships. He also was selected as the most outstanding player for his club team last year.
With these latest recruits, Queens has 11 players on its roster entering the start of the 2017-18 school year.
Queens, a NCAA Division II school located in Charlotte, North Carolina, will compete as an independent team in its inaugural season. It also will be the second southeast college in the last two years to start a NCAA Division I-II men’s volleyball program.