GREENVILLE, S.C. – Belmont Abbey College captured their second straight Conference Carolinas Men’s Volleyball Championship on Saturday, defeating top seed and 20th-ranked University of Mount Olive.

The top seed and host Crusaders jumped ahead winning the first set 25-19 behind a .296 attack percentage. The Belmont Abbey defense might have been more impressive in the opening set, holding Mount Olive to a .033 attack percentage.

Mount Olive turned the match around, winning the second set 25-22 behind a .276 attack percentage while holding Belmont Abbey to a .100 attack percentage.

However, the Belmont Abbey offense picked up the pace over the third and fourth sets, hitting .381 in their 25-23 third set victory and making only three errors on 17 kills while hitting .560 in the fourth set. The Crusaders won the fourth set 25-21 to take the match 3-1 and claim their third straight title.

Caden Day led Belmont Abbey with 16 kills and 13 digs while Zach Puentes and Logan Erickson added 11 kills apiece. Day hit .429 while Erickson hit .588 in the match. Joseph Morris added 46 assists and added six digs.

Matthew Eckberg led Mount Olive with 18 kills while Kory Grant followed with 12 kills and nine digs.

Belmont Abbey earns the automatic berth in the NCAA Men’s Volleyball Championship for the third straight year.

The 2026 NC Men's Volleyball Championship starts with regional round matchups on May 1 and 2 before the semifinals and finals will be played at Pauley Pavilion in Los Angeles. The selection show will air live on April 26 at 4:00 p.m. ET on NCAA.com.
 

---

Builders Services of North Carolina Elite 26 Award
Jude Rotondo, Belmont Abbey

2026 Men’s Volleyball Championship All-Tournament Team
MVP – Joseph Morris, Belmont Abbey
Caden Day, Belmont Abbey
Logan Erickson, Belmont Abbey
Jackson Lahey, Mount Olive
Kory Grant, Mount Olive
Davide Nicolini, Lees-McRae
Yorian Velez Vega, North Greenville

---

CHAMPIONSHIP WEBSITE | BRACKET
 

---

2026 Conference Carolinas Men's Volleyball Championship
Quarterfinals – Wednesday, April 15 (at higher seed)
No. 3 Lees-McRae def. No. 6 Emmanuel, 3-1 BOX SCORE
No. 4 North Greenville def. No. 5 Barton, 3-1 BOX SCORE
 
Semifinals – Saturday, April 18 (Wheeler Center, Belmont, N.C.)
No. 1 Belmont Abbey def. No. 4 North Greenville, 3-0 BOX SCORE
No. 2 Mount Olive vs. No. 3 Lees-McRae, 3-0 BOX SCORE
 
Final – Sunday, April 19 (Wheeler Center, Belmont, N.C.)
No. 1 Belmont Abbey def No. 2 Mount Olive, 3-1 BOX SCORE