The Merrimack College men’s volleyball team on Tuesday accepted an invitation from the NEC Council of Presidents to join the NEC as an associate member starting in 2026-27.
Merrimack launched its men’s volleyball program in 2023 as a member of the NEC, but transitioned to a Division I independent schedule given the recently-named Metro Conference did not sponsor men’s volleyball.
The 2025-26 school year proved to be yet another academically dominant year, as 1,432 collegiate and high school volleyball teams maintained a year-long grade-point average of at least 3.3 on a 4.0 scale (or 4.1 on a 5.0 scale), to earn the 2026 AVCA Team Academic Award.
The award list includes 58 men’s collegiate teams and 58 boys high school teams.
Congratulations to the men’s collegiate teams named 2026 Team Academic Champions:
The AVCA, in partnership with VolleyStation, has launched AVCA VolleyLine, a new digital hub that connects the volleyball community through accessible, reliable match results. AVCA VolleyLine, which is live now, gives you scores in one place.
The U.S. Men’s National Team finished Volleyball Nations League (VNL) preliminary play with an 8-4 record after a 3-0 (25-20, 25-21, 25-19) loss to world No. 1 Poland at NOW Arena in Hoffman Estates, Illinois, on Sunday night. The U.S. will be seeded fifth in the VNL finals, while Poland earned the second seed behind undefeated Japan with the win before a large contingent of fans in the Chicago area.
The U.S. will face fourth-seeded Italy (8-4) in the quarterfinal round of the VNL finals, which begin on July 29 in Ningbo Beilun, China.
USA Volleyball announces the 26 athletes for this year’s Boys U17 National Team who will train for the NORCECA Pan American Cup in Guatemala City, Guatemala, Aug. 4-9, 2026.
The athletes will participate in a training block July 25-Aug. 1 at the National Team Training Center in Anaheim, Calif. From this group, 14 athletes will be chosen to represent the United States on the final competition roster in Guatemala.
Former U.S. Men’s and Women’s National Team assistant coach Mike Wall will lead the team. He’s joined by Steven Duhoux (Ohio State) and Tom Stillwell (NTDP).
The U.S. Men’s Sitting National Team finished fifth at the 2026 World ParaVolley World Championship in Hangzhou, China, with a 3-2 (25-22, 27-25, 20-25, 20-25, 15-10) victory over Germany on Friday behind a 37-point performance from outside hitter Zach Upp. The fifth-place finish marks the best U.S. finish at the championship.
USA Volleyball set to host the Men’s Beach Collegiate Challenge with two premier events — one on the East Coast and one on the West Coast — representing the organization’s first coast-to-coast staging of the competition.
The 2026 edition moves the event to two vibrant beach volleyball hubs – Manhattan Beach, California, and Dania Beach, Florida.
The East Coast Challenge moves from Stevenson University in Maryland to the Rita Crockett Beach Sports Academy in Florida, Sept.
25-27, while the West Coast Challenge will be on the south side of the Manhattan Beach Pier, Oct.
9-11. Registration for both events is now open.
JVA Podcast: Boys Volleyball Sanctioning with Sarah Conklin
Sarah Conklin joins the JVA’s podcast to break down how North Carolina went from grassroots passion to official high school sanctioning. She shares the wins, the setbacks, and the strategies that helped build momentum, including the role of social media, community buy-in, and relentless advocacy
Penn State men’s volleyball head coach Colin McMillan announced on Friday the addition of Jacob Kerschner
as an assistant coach. Kerschner arrives in Happy Valley after spending five seasons on the staff at Lewis and one year as an associate club director.
