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Check out all the college men’s volleyball matches to follow today and how to follow the matches live.
EIVA Tournament Semifinal matches
No. 2 seed NJIT (13-5, 13-3 EIVA) vs. No. 3 seed George Mason (14-6, 11-5 EIVA)
Match vitals: 4:30 p.m. in University Park, Pennsylvania
Follow live: Live video, Live stats, In-match tweets
What to know: The two teams were supposed to play in the final regular season series of the year in Newark, but the pair of matches were cancelled due to COVID concerns. In the pair of matches played in Fairfax, NJIT won both matches. The Highlanders outhit the Patriots, .350 to .231, and outblocked them 21 to 9. NJIT middle attacker Luca Berger had seven blocks in each match, while George Mason opposite had 29 combined kills. Wagner leads the Patriots with 3.84 kills per game and 22 aces. On the other side of the net, outside attacker Alvaro Gimeno leads NJIT with 3.38 kills per game and 29 aces. This is the first EIVA Tournament match for NJIT since 1998, while George Mason has lost in the semifinals the last two appearances (2018, 2019). NJIT has the advantage offensively, ranking No. 6 nationally with 1.60 aces per game, and No. 7 nationally with a .322 attack percentage. George Mason has the advantage when it comes to digging – 9.90 digs per game versus 7.84 digs per game).
No. 1 seed Penn State (19-3, 16-2 EIVA) vs. No. 4 seed Saint Francis (8-18, 6-12 EIVA)
Match vitals: 7:30 p.m. in University Park, Pennsylvania
Follow live: Live video, Live stats, In-match tweets
What to know: These two teams also only played two of the four scheduled regular season matches. Top-seeded Penn State won both matches played in Happy Valley, with the first match going the minimum and the second one going the distance. Saint Francis was up 13-12 in the fifth game in the second match, but Penn State won in overtime, closing on a 4-1 run to finish the match. Penn State hit .382 in the first match, while being slowed down to a .223 attack percentage in the second match. Cal Fisher had 29 combined kills for Penn State, while Michael Fisher had 32 combined kills for Saint Francis. Saint Francis, who has won seven of the last 11 matches, is led middle Joshua Blair. Blair leads the team in attack percentage, aces, and blocks, and is second on the team in kills; his .433 attack percentage ranks No. 9 nationally. On the other side of the net, Penn State is led by opposite Cal Fisher who leads the team with 0.776 aces per game and 3.34 kills per game; his 0.776 aces per game leads the nation. Both teams serve effectively, as both teams rank in the top seven nationally in aces per game. Saint Francis’s 1.51 aces per game rank No. 7 nationally, while Penn State’s 2.07 aces per game rank No. 2 nationally. Where Penn State clearly has the advantage over Saint Francis is in attack percentage. The Nittany Lions’ .325 attack percentage ranks No. 6 nationally, while the Red Flash’s .198 is seventh-worst nationally.
MPSF Tournament Quarterfinal matches
No. 2 seed UCLA (14-5, 14-5 MPSF) vs. No. 7 seed Concordia-Irvine (3-13, 3-13 MPSF)
Match vitals: 2 p.m. in Provo, Utah
Follow live: Live video (Flo Sports), Live stats, In-match tweets
What to know: UCLA won both matches played at Pauley Pavilion against Concordia-Irvine in sweeps, while Concordia-Irvine’s win versus UCLA came on the campus of the Eagles in a reverse sweep. UCLA was led by opposite Cole Ketrzynski who had a combined 43 kills in the three matches, while Concordia-Irvine was led by Barsemian’s 33 combined kills. In the Concordia-Irvine victory, the Eagles used a strong service game to secure victory as nine of their ten aces came in the final three games. In the final match between the two teams in the regular season, the Bruins attacked at a blistering .554 for the match. On paper, UCLA is better than Concordia-Irvine in every statistical category, except for digs per game. The Bruins’ 8.18 digs per game rank No. 31 nationally, while the Eagles’ 8.59 digs per game ranks No. 26 nationally. UCLA ranks in the top six nationally with 12.99 kills per game, 12.18 assists per game, and 1.64 aces per game. UCLA split their pair of matches in Provo this year, while Concordia-Irvine did not play in Provo this year.
No. 4 seed Grand Canyon (8-10, 8-10 MPSF) vs. No. 5 seed USC (5-12, 5-12 MPSF)
Match vitals: 5 p.m. in Provo, Utah
Follow live: Live video (Flo Sports), Live stats, In-match tweets
What to know: Grand Canyon defeated USC in all three matches in the regular season series. Grand Canyon dominated USC in the one match in Phoenix where the Lopes used 12 aces to limit USC to only 46 points in three games. Outside attacker Christian Janke led the Lopes in the season series with the Trojans with 40 combined kills, while Fauntleroy 58 kills of his own. In the season series, Grand Canyon out-blocked USC, 28-12, and outhit the Trojans, .361 to .207. On paper, Grand Canyon is better than USC in every statistical category, except for kills and assists per game. The Trojans rank No. 10 in both categories, while Lopes rank No. 14 in both categories. Both teams lost both of their matches in Provo this year, but Grand Canyon took three games off BYU to Trojans’ one.
No. 3 seed Pepperdine (11-5, 11-5 MPSF) vs. No. 6 seed Stanford (3-13, 3-13 MPSF)
Match vitals: 8 p.m. in Provo, Utah
Follow live: Live video (Flo Sports), Live stats, In-match tweets
What to know: Pepperdine defeated Stanford in all three regular season matches this year. Stanford and Concordia-Irvine tied at 3-13, but Stanford won the tiebreaker as they defeated Eagles in both matches this year. Stanford and Pepperdine were supposed to play last weekend, but the matches were cancelled due to COVID concerns within the Pepperdine men’s volleyball program. The three matches between the two teams were the first three matches for Stanford, whose season start was delayed due to local health restrictions. Interestingly, the first two matches were scheduled on the fly as Pepperdine’s schedule became open that week due to cancellations stemming from the COVID concerns within the Concordia-Irvine men’s volleyball program. Two of the three matches between the two teams were sweeps. Both teams lost both of their matches in Provo this year. Wilmot had 18 blocks in the three match series. Pepperdine is better than Stanford in every statistical category except for a slim edge in blocking, but the disparity in attack percentage is the starkest. The Waves’ .304 attack percentage ranks No. 9 nationally, while the Cardinal’s .199 ranks No. 38 nationally. Neither teams is particularly adept at digging, with both teams ranking in the bottom nationally in digs per game.
Big West Tournament Quarterfinal matches
No. 3 seed Long Beach State (6-4, 6-4 Big West) vs. No. 6 seed UC Irvine (2-13, 2-8 Big West)
Match vitals: 4:30 p.m. in Manoa, Hawai’i
Follow live: Live video, Live stats, In-match tweets
What to know: UC Irvine ended up being the No. 6 seed even though they and CSUN ended with the same conference record of 2-8 due to point differential. UC Irvine’s season has been characterized by injuries and a fluid starting lineup. One of the biggest surprises for the Anteaters has been the emergence of freshman setter Dylan Zhai who was named to conference’s All-Freshman team on Monday. Long Beach State’s season started almost a month after UC Irvine’s did, and in fact the Beach only got into the gym three weeks before their season started. Both teams had two players named to the All-Big West First team – middle attacker Simon Andersen and outside attacker Spencer Olivier for Long Beach State and middle attacker Scott Stadick and outside attacker Joel Schneidmiller for UC Irvine. Both teams played a pair of matches against top-ranked Hawai’i in Manoa during the regular, with both teams forcing a match to go the distance. Long Beach State won both matches against UC Irvine this year, with the second match, at the Bren Events Center, going the distance. That second match also stands out not just because it was a reverse sweep for the Beach, but because it was the breakout party for setter Ryan Poole. Then-starting setter Aidan Knipe went down with an injury during that second match and Ryan Poole led Long Beach State to the win and has not relinquished the starting role since. In the two matches, the Beach outhit the Anteaters .332 to .187 and outblocked them 24 to 14.
No. 4 seed UC San Diego (3-12, 3-7 Big West) vs. No. 5 seed CSUN (2-8, 2-8 Big West)
Match vitals: 7 p.m. in Manoa, Hawai’i
Follow live: Live video, Live stats, In-match tweets
What to know: Just like Long Beach State and UC Irvine, these two teams are contrasted by how their seasons started. Just like Long Beach State, CSUN was only in the gym three weeks before their season started, and just like UC Irvine, UC San Diego started their season a month before CSUN. While the production that All-Big West First Team middle attacker Daniel Wetter was expected before the season, All-Freshman team honoree setter Tyler Merchen’s production was not. An injury to incumbent setter Taylor Ittner during the offseason led to Merchen being trust into the starting role. UC San Diego’s season also was marred by an injury to key returner as senior outside attacker Wyatt Harrison got injured in warmups in the Tritons’ second match of the season and has not played a match since. Sophomore outside attacker Ryan Ka stepped in the starting role to fill Harrison’s void. UC San Diego had one player named to the All-Big West First Team (outside attacker Kyle McCauley) and one player named honorable mention (middle attacker Shane Benetz). UC San Diego won both matches versus CSUN in the regular season series. While UC San Diego overwhelmed CSUN in the first match by outhitting them, .303 to .072, the Matadors actually outhit the Tritons in the second match, .391 to .336. In fact, CSUN hit .857 in the second game, the best mark in a single game for a Big West team this year. UC San Diego lost both matches in Manoa this season, while CSUN did not play there.
NCAA Division III Men’s Volleyball Championship Quarterfinal matches
Carthage (20-0) vs. Messiah (17-2)
Match vitals: Noon in Salem, Virginia
Follow live: Live video, Live stats
Dominican (16-1) vs. Vassar (9-3)
Match vitals: 2:30 p.m. in Salem, Virginia
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Southern Virginia (15-3) vs. Wentworth (8-2)
Match vitals: 5 p.m. in Salem, Virginia
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Lancaster Bible (11-3) vs. Benedictine (14-3)
Match vitals: 7:30 p.m. in Salem, Virginia
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NAIA Men’s Volleyball National Championship matches
Pool C: Campbellsville (26-4) vs. Vanguard (11-3)
Match vitals: 10 a.m. in Des Moines, Iowa
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Pool B: Benedictine-Mesa (16-0) vs. Lourdes (15-2)
Match vitals: 1 p.m. in Des Moines, Iowa
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Pool D: Jamestown (21-2) vs. Park (20-5)
Match vitals: 4 p.m. in Des Moines, Iowa
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Pool A: Grand View (23-0) vs. Missouri Valley (18-5)
Match vitals: 7 p.m. in Des Moines, Iowa
Follow live: Live video, Live stats