North Greenville Picked to Defend Conference Carolinas Men’s Volleyball Title
GREENVILLE, S.C. – The Conference Carolinas men’s volleyball head coaches unanimously selected North Greenville to defend their conference championship in the 2023 preseason poll released on Thursday.
The Crusaders earned 49 points with seven first-place votes (teams are not allowed to vote for themselves). North Greenville captured both the regular season and tournament titles last season and became the first Conference Carolinas program to win a national tournament match when they swept Princeton.
King was picked to finish second with 40 points followed by Belmont Abbey and Mount Olive who tied for third with 31 points while The Abbey garnered the last first-place vote.
Emmanuel was picked to finish fifth with 27 points followed by Erskine (24), Lees-McRae (15) and Barton (7).
The season gets underway on Friday, Jan. 6, with the conference tournament beginning on Tuesday, April 18 at the No. 3 and 4 seeds, with the semifinals and final being held at King on April 21-22.
2023 Conference Carolinas
Men’s Volleyball Preseason Poll
| School |
Total (First Place) |
| North Greenville |
49 (7) |
| King |
40 |
| Belmont Abbey |
31 (1) |
| Mount Olive |
31 |
| Emmanuel |
27 |
| Erskine |
24 |
| Lees-McRae |
15 |
| Barton |
7 |
2023 Conference Carolinas Men’s Volleyball
Players to Watch
Barton
- Brandon Johnston, Jr., OH, Hawkes Bay, New Zealand
- Moses Kresch, Sr., S, Hershey, Pennsylvania
- Benjamin Wiechet, So., MB/RS, Suffolk, Virginia
Belmont Abbey
- Matteo Miselli, Sr., OH, Reggio Emilia, Italy (2022 First Team All-Conference Carolinas; 2021 Second Team All-Conference Carolinas, Conference Carolinas All-Tournament Team)
- Dan Cerqua, Sr., L/DS, Baldwinsville, New York (2021 Conference Carolinas All-Tournament Team)
- Ethan Rehmann, So., MB, Johnston, Iowa
Emmanuel
- Henrik Westhoff, Sr., S, Bocholt, Germany
- Nick Eichenberger, Sr., L, Lee’s Summit, Missouri (2022 Conference Carolinas Defensive Player of the Year, Second Team All-Conference Carolinas)
- Jayden Young, Sr., OH, West Palm Beach, Florida
Erskine
- Edgerrin Austin, R-Jr., OH, Joliet, Illinois (2022 Third Team All-Conference Carolinas)
- Kacper Rybarczyk, Jr., OH, Warsaw, Poland
- Jason Sall, R-Jr., OPP, New Lenox, Illinois
King
- Jack Sarnowski, Sr., S, Winter Springs, Florida (2022 Third Team All-Conference Carolinas)
- Jackson Carroll, Sr., OH, Mukwonago, Wisconsin
- Kellan Kennedy, Jr., MB, Clifton Park, New York
Lees-McRae
- Michael Marsans, Sr., OH, Pembroke Pines, Florida (2022 First Team All-Conference Carolinas, NCAA Kills/set statistical champion)
- Bradley Peters, Sr., S, Virginia Beach, Virginia
- Ace Backer, Sr., MB, Virginia Beach, Virginia
Mount Olive
- Pedro Gonzalez, Sr., MB, Miami, Florida
- Trevor Treser, Sr., L, Wexford, Pennsylvania
- Tate Sandvig, So., OH, Boone, Iowa
North Greenville
- Michael de la Cruz, So., San Juan, Puerto Rico (2022 Conference Carolinas Freshman of the Year, Second Team All-Conference Carolinas)
- Diego Rosich, Jr., Cupey, Puerto Rico (2022 Second Team All-Conference Carolinas, Conference Carolinas All-Tournament Team)
- Jackson Chadwell, Fr., Brandon, Florida