Men's Volleyball Claims Top Spot In MCVL Preseason Poll

ST. LOUIS, Mo.—The Midwest Collegiate Volleyball League (MCVL) released the 2022 Preseason Poll and the two-time MCVL Tournament Champions Fontbonne University hold the top spot once again.

The Griffins finished with 64 points and collected eight of the nine first place votes. Mount Union ended in second place with 56 points and one first place vote. Trine and Mount St. Joseph rounded out the top four.

Fontbonne comes off a 2021 season going 19-3 overall and 15-1 in conference play. The team hosted the MCVL Tournament for the first time in program history winning the semifinals in straight sets over Trine and claiming the title over Mount Union in four sets the following day.

At the NCAA Tournament, the Griffins took on Messiah in the opener but fell in five sets concluding its season.

Ryan Lively was named MCVL Rookie of the Year and went on to be named to the NVA / AVCA All-American Team, becoming the first player in program history to earn the honor.

Kyler van Rossum-O'Connell and Braden Woolsey joined Lively on the MCVL First Team, while Zach Rothstein followed on Second Team.

This year, the Griffins bring back the majority of its roster led by Lively who set a single season record at Fontbonne with 324 kills and a 4.56 kills per set average. He also finished with a .352 hitting percentage and 115 digs.

Cameron Graves also returns looking to build off his career year in 2021 posting 191 kills, a .298 hitting percentage, and 99 digs. Woolsey will be another player to look out for in the middle after totaling 145 kills, a single season record .479 hitting percentage, and 69 blocks.

Woolsey currently sits in second place at Fontbonne in blocks needing 64 to surpass Emir Hadzisalihovic (2016-19) as the all-time leader. Nate Paasch also returns for his senior season after totaling 77 kills and 99 digs a season ago.

Kyler van Rossum-O'Connell returns to lead the offense after totaling 818 assists and a career-high 11.21 assists per set last year. Defensively, he totaled 144 digs. He currently ranks 12^th all-time with 3,642 assists and is 93 digs away from reaching 1,000 in his career.

He's just 358 assists away from becoming the ninth player in Division III history to accumulate 4,000 career assists.

Defensively, the Griffins look to replace Rothstein who became the all-time leader in Division III history with 1,327 digs.

This year, the Griffins welcome in eight newcomers in Logan Irby, Tengis Kelley, Ryan Taylor, Omari Cobb, Diego Cruz, Collin Gregg, Ayden Illingworth, and Kyle Snook.

The Griffins have an intersquad scrimmage on Dec. 3^rd and will get its season underway on January 28^th at Wisconsin Lutheran.

To view the entire MCVL poll visit HERE.  

About Fontbonne University

Fontbonne University is a private, Catholic liberal arts university located in St. Louis, committed to a transformative education and inspiring students to become global citizens who think critically, act ethically and serve responsibly. The university, founded in 1923, is sponsored by the Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet. For more information, visit www.fontbonne.edu

Make sure to follow the men's volleyball team on all its social media accounts: Twitter(@FBUGriffinsMVB), Instagram (@fontbonnemvb) and Facebook (/FontbonneUGriffins).