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A nationwide voting committee selected 25 players to the 2024 Off the Block Preseason All-American Team.
Off the Block announced on Wednesday the annual Preseason All-American Teams that recognize the players projected to be the best in the nation during the upcoming NCAA Division I-II men’s volleyball season.
The defending NCAA champions UCLA lead all schools with five Preseason All-Americans, including four first-team selections.
The Bruins were one of six teams that had multiple players making a Preseason All-American Team.
Long Beach State had four Preseason All-American selections, while Grand Canyon had three players earn Preseason All-American honors. In addition, Hawai’i, Loyola and Penn State each had two players named Preseason All-Americans.
Seven schools – Ball State, BYU, Ohio State, Purdue Fort Wayne, Stanford, UC Irvine and USC – all were represented with a player on a Preseason All-American Team.
Players eligible for the Preseason All-American Teams had to be on an active roster of a Division I-II men’s volleyball team.
The voting committee for this preseason award was comprised of about 20 NCAA Division I-II men’s volleyball head coaches and men’s volleyball media members from around the nation.
The 12 players receiving the most votes were named Preseason First-Team All-Americans, while the next top 12 vote-getters were selected as Preseason Second-Team All-Americans. An additional player made the second team as a result of a tie in the voting.
The NCAA Division I-II men’s volleyball will begin the opening week of January and conclude with the eight-team NCAA Tournament in May at Long Beach State.
Off the Block First-Team Preseason All-Americans
Setter:Andrew Rowan, UCLA
Opposite: Ido David, UCLA
Opposite: Parker Van Buren, Loyola
Outside attacker: Spyros Chakas, Hawai’i
Outside attacker: Ethan Champlin, UCLA
Outside attacker: Hilir Henno, UC Irvine
Outside attacker: Jacob Pasteur, Ohio State
Middle attacker: Toby Ezeonu, Penn State
Middle attacker: Merrick McHenry, UCLA
Middle attacker: Simon Torwie, Long Beach State
Middle attacker: Guilherme Voss, Hawai’i
Libero: Mason Briggs, Long Beach State
Off the Block Second-Team Preseason All-Americans
Setter: Dan Mangun, Loyola
Setter: Nicholas Slight, Grand Canyon
Opposite: Camden Gianni, Grand Canyon
Opposite: Clarke Godbold, Long Beach State
Outside attacker: Jon Diedrich, Purdue Fort Wayne
Outside attacker: Jackson Hickman, Grand Canyon
Outside attacker: Dillon Klein, USC
Outside attacker: Alex Knight, UCLA
Outside attacker: Tinaishe Ndavazocheva, Ball State
Outside attacker: Will Rottman, Stanford
Outside attacker: Sotiris Siapanis, Long Beach State
Middle attacker: Teon Taylor, BYU
Libero: Ryan Merk, Penn State
First-Team Preseason All-American player bios
Mason Briggs, Long Beach State
Briggs last season led the Big West and was fifth in the nation averaging 2.38 digs per game, including having double-digit digs in 11 matches. The libero also had 453 service receptions and a 94.8 percent successful passing rating en route to helping the Beach reach the NCAA Tournament semifinals.
Spyros Chakas, Hawai’i
Chakas finished last season among the national leaders and in the top 10 of the Big West with both a 3.38 kills per game average and a .314 attack percentage. The pin-hitter also was fourth in the Big West averaging 0.38 aces per game as Hawai’i reached the NCAA Tournament finals.
Ethan Champlin, UCLA
Champlin was in the top five of the MPSF with both a 0.36 aces per game average and a .349 attack percentage last season. The outside attacker also was second on the team with a 2.75 kills per game average as UCLA won its first NCAA title in 17 years.
Ido David, UCLA
David ended last season in the nation’s top 20 with a 3.69 kills per game average, including having a match-high 23 kills in the NCAA Tournament finals. The opposite also was in the nation’s top 25 with both a .369 attack percentage and a 0.40 attack percentage.
Toby Ezeonu, Penn State
Ezeonu was second in the nation with a .490 attack percentage last season, including hitting at least .400 in 15 consecutive matches during the regular season. The middle attacker also fifth in the EIVA with a 0.87 blocks per game average as Penn State reached the NCAA Tournament semifinals.
Hilir Henno, UC Irvine
Henno last season set a single-season school record with 87 aces and had a nation-best 0.88 aces per game average. The outside attacker had at least five aces in seven matches, including a single-match program record nine aces in a near upset against Penn State. Henno also was among the national leaders with a 3.46 kills per game average as the Anteaters reached Big West Tournament finals.
Merrick McHenry, UCLA
McHenry led the nation with a career-best .526 attack percentage and had double-digit kills in 11 matches last season. Along with the offensive performance, McHenry was ninth in the nation with a 1.05 blocks per game average and helped lead UCLA to the NCAA championship.
Jacob Pasteur, Ohio State
Pasteur finished last season in the nation’s top 15 with a 3.90 kills per game average and had at least 15 kills in 14 matches. The MIVA Player of the Year also was in the conference’s 10 with both a .313 attack percentage and a 1.70 digs per game average as Ohio State won its first MIVA championship in five years.
Andrew Rowan, UCLA
Rowan as a freshman last season guided the Bruins to a nation-best .382 attack percentage and was in the nation’s top 10 averaging 10.14 assists per game. The setter also was in the nation’s top 15 with a 0.46 aces per game average as the Bruins won their first NCAA championship since 2006.
Simon Torwie, Long Beach State
Torwie led the nation last season with a career-best 1.60 blocks per game average and had at least five blocks in 16 matches. The middle attacker also had a career-best .461 attack percentage to help the Beach reach the NCAA Tournament semifinals.
Parker Van Buren, Loyola
Van Buren last season was fifth in the nation averaging 4.13 kills per game and was second in the MIVA hitting .338. The pin-hitter also was in the nation’s top 15 with a 0.45 aces per game average and helped Loyola earn a share of the MIVA regular season title.
Guilherme Voss, Hawai’i
Voss was fifth in the nation with a 1.15 blocks per game average last season, including having a combined 20 blocks in four postseason matches. The middle attacker also had a career-best .559 attack percentage as the Rainbow Warriors advanced to the NCAA Tournament finals.
Second-Team Preseason All-American player bios
Jon Diedrich, Purdue Fort Wayne
Diedrich ended in the nation’s top 20 with a 3.74 kills per game average and had at least 15 kills in 11 matches last season. The outside attacker also had a career-high 33 aces and was among the MIVA leaders with a 0.32 aces per game average.
Camden Gianni, Grand Canyon
Gianni led the MPSF and was seventh in the nation last season with a 0.50 aces per game average last season. The opposite also was among the MPSF leaders averaging 2.95 kills per game as Grand Canyon advanced to the NCAA Tournament.
Clarke Godbold, Long Beach State
Godbold was in the top 10 of the Big West with a 2.78 kills per game average last season. The opposite also had a career-high 32 kills on a .571 attack percentage in a five-game victory against CSUN.
Jackson Hickman, Grand Canyon
Hickman finished last season in the top 10 of the MPSF with both a 3.07 kills per game average and a .342 attack percentage. The pin-hitter also helped the Antelopes reach the NCAA Tournament for the first time in program history.
Dillon Klein, USC
Klein as a freshman last season was in the nation’s top 25 with a 3.60 kills per game average. The outside attacker also had at least 20 kills in four matches, including a season-high 29 kills in a victory against Stanford.
Alex Knight, UCLA
Knight was in the top 10 of the MPSF last season with both a .342 attack percentage and a 0.85 blocks per game average. The outside attacker also had 15 kills and hit .353 as UCLA defeated Hawai’i in the NCAA Tournament finals.
Dan Mangun, Loyola
Mangun was fifth in the nation last season with 10.32 assists per game average and guided the offense to the nation’s 10th-best attack percentage in the nation at .318. The setter also was in the top 10 of the MIVA averaging 1.63 digs per game as Loyola won a share of MIVA regular season title.
Ryan Merk, Penn State
Merk had a team-high 571 service receptions and a 95.8 percent successful passing rating last season, including having no errors in 17 matches. The libero led the EIVA with a 1.85 digs per game average as Penn State advanced to the NCAA Tournament semifinals.
Tinaishe Ndavazocheva, Ball State
Ndavazocheva ended last season in the nation’s top 25 with a 3.60 kills per game average, including having at least 15 kills in 10 matches. The outside attacker also was fifth in the MIVA with a .328 attack percentage as Ball State advanced to the MIVA Tournament finals.
Will Rottman, Stanford
Rottman finished last season in the nation’s top 20 with a 3.67 kills per game average, including having a season-high 26 kills on a .490 attack percentage in a victory against BYU in the MPSF Tournament semifinals. The outside attacker also was fourth in the MPSF averaging 0.36 aces per game.
Sotiris Siapanis, Long Beach State
Siapanis was in the top 10 of the Big West with both a 3.21 kills per game average and 0.41 aces per game average last season. The outside attacker also in the top 10 the conference defensively with a 1.64 digs per game average as the Beach reached the NCAA Tournament semifinals.
Nicholas Slight, Grand Canyon
Slight guided the offense to the third-best attack percentage in the nation at .344 and was 10th in the nation with a 10.09 assists per game average last season. The setter also had a career-high 147 digs to help Grand Canyon reach the NCAA Tournament.
Teon Taylor, BYU
Taylor was second in the nation with a 1.32 blocks per game average last season, including having a season-high 13 blocks in a victory against UC Irvine. The middle attacker also finished with a .366 attack percentage as BYU finished in second place in the MPSF.