Penn State unanimous favorite to win 2022 EIVA title

There was no doubt about the preseason favorite to win the EIVA.

Penn State garnered every first-place vote in the EIVA Preseason Coaches Poll that the conference was released on Tuesday.

The defending EIVA champions Penn State ended last season qualifying for the NCAA Tournament for the first time in four years and swept Belmont Abbey in the play-in match. The Nittany Lions also return every starter including setter Cole Bogner, the 2021 EIVA Player of the Year, along with All-American pin-hitters Cal Fisher and Brett Wildman.

There has not been a repeat champion in the EIVA since Penn State won 17 consecutive conference titles from 1999 to 2015.

NJIT finished the nine-team preseason poll in second place with 65 points – 16 fewer points than Penn State. In addition, George Mason earned 59 points to end in third place.

Princeton, which opted out of the 2021 season because of the coronavirus pandemic, round-out the top half of the preseason poll.

The EIVA season begins in February and concludes with the conference tournament in April. The winner of the EIVA Tournament will receive the conference’s automatic berth to the NCAA Tournament.

2022 EIVA Preseason Coaches Poll

1. Penn State – 81 (9) points
2. NJIT – 65 points
3. George Mason – 59 points
4. Princeton – 56 points
5. Saint Francis
6. Harvard
7. Charleston
8. St. Francis Brooklyn
9. Sacred Heart

EIVA Players to Watch

Charleston – Lachlan Bray, Curtis Raines
George Mason – Omar Hoyos, Richie Hoff
Harvard – Campbell Schoenfeld, Eric Li
NJIT – Julian Meissner, Jens Feldthus
Penn State – Toby Ezeonu, Brett Wildman
Princeton – Joe Kelly, Jerod Nelsen
Sacred Heart – Mark Berry, Ife Loverton
Saint Francis – Josh Blair, Tom Leahey
St. Francis Brooklyn – David Vorfi, James Henneberry

*Head coaches from each team selected players