Men's Volleyball | 4/23/2025 3:00:00 PM
AMHERST, N.Y. -- For the first time in program history, a record six players from the Daemen University men's volleyball team have earned All-Northeast Conference awards. Two Daemen players picked up First Team All-NEC honors this season, graduate student
Zach Schneider (Lockport, N.Y.) and sophomore
Ondrej Arabasz (Jicin, Czech Republic), while four Wildcats, sophomore
Jariel Giraud (Orlando, Fla.), senior
Maverick O'Neill (East Amherst, N.Y.), redshirt junior
Billy Wieberg (Grand Island, N.Y.) and junior
Kyle Zelasko (West Seneca, N.Y.) all earned Second Team All-NEC honors. This marks the most players earning postseason conference honors for the Wildcats in Daemen's three years in the NEC.
Zach Schneider earns his third career First Team All-NEC honor after putting together another successful season for the Wildcats. In his sixth and final season at Daemen, Schneider has started in 19 of Daemen's 25 matches this season and leads the Wildcats offensively with 273 total kills to average 3.9 kills/set (3rd in the NEC) while hitting at a .305 clip (5th in the NEC). The graduate student has 26 aces (0.37 aces/set ranks 5th in the league) and is third in the NEC with 4.61 points/set this season while adding 1.43 digs/set (100 total, third on the team) along with 39 total blocks. Daemen's offensive leader in 15 of the 19 matches he appeared in, he hit in the double-digits in 14 matches, including a season-high 23 kills against FDU on April 5, tying his own program record for single-game kills in a four set match. Scheider's legacy as a Wildcat will extend far after he graduates. The program's all-time career leader in matches played (114), sets played (399), total kills (1,447), kills per set (3.63), attack attempts (3,012), service aces (116), aces per set (0.38), digs (604), blocks (194), solo blocks (50), assisted blocks (144), points (1722) and points per set (4.32), Schneider leaves Daemen as the most decorated player in program history, helping the Wildcats to 88 wins over his career, the 2024 NEC Tournament title, three First Team All-NEC honors, the 2023 NEC Player of the Year award, and is the only Daemen player in program history to be named AVCA Honorable Mention All-America (2023).
Ondrej Arabasz collects all-conference honors for the second consecutive season, being named to the First Team for the first time this season. In his sophomore campaign, the 6-foot-7 middle blocker ranks second for the Wildcats at the net with 40 total blocks (0.62 blocks/set). With 103 kills (1.58 kills/set) and just 31 errors on 217 attacks on the year, Arabasz leads the team and ranks second in the conference with a .332 hitting percentage and added 20 service aces this season. In nine matches this season, Arabasz had one or zero attack errors, three times finishing with zero errors in a match. He hit in the double figures in both matches against LIU this season, leading the Wildcats offensively against the Sharks on March 29 with 17 attacks with no errors for a .647 hitting percentage. Arabasz had a season-high .692 hitting percentage in Daemen's 3-1 win against CUI on Jan. 11 after totaling nine kills on 13 attacks with no errors. The middle blocker recorded at least one block in 12 of the 19 matches he played in this season, and finished with a season-high seven blocks in the 3-1 win over Roberts Wesleyan on Feb. 5.
Jariel Giraud took the reins as Daemen's primary setter for the majority of the season and earned Second Team All-NEC honors for the first time. Starting 15 matches, including six of the eight conference matches this season, Giraud led the Wildcats with 505 assists to average 9.18 assists per set, good for second in the league. In conference play, Giraud set the Wildcats to average 12.61 kills per set off 11.55 assists per set. The sophomore setter added 73 digs (1.33 digs/set), 29 total blocks (0.53 blocks/set), 19 kills and eight aces. On the year, Giraud posted 40 or more assists in five of the 15 matches that he played in, including a season-high 45 assists in the five set loss to LIU on March 28. He recorded at least one block in 11 matches, including totaling a career-high seven blocks against Roberts Wesleyan on Feb. 5, and recorded at least one kill in 12 matches, finishing with a season-high three kills twice (vs. Princeton on March 22 and vs. Saint Francis on April 11).
Maverick O'Neill earns Second Team All-NEC honors for the first time in his career after a successful senior season. The middle blocker leads the Wildcats at the net with a career-high 67 total blocks and ranks second in the league with 0.89 blocks per set this season. O'Neill has accounted for 20 solo blocks this season -- a Daemen single-season record -- while adding 47 block assists on the year. Also an offensive threat as a middle, O'Neill has chipped in 73 kills (0.97 kills/set) on 162 attacks to hit at a .253 clip. O'Neill has recorded a block in 22 of the 23 matches that he's played in this season, and totaled multiple blocks in all but three of those matches. He had a career-high 10 blocks against LIU on March 28, recording eight assisted blocks and two solo blocks in the five-set loss to the Sharks. O'Neill has recorded at least one kill in 22 of 23 matches this season.
Billy Wieberg was named to the Second Team All-NEC for the first time in his career after putting together a breakout redshirt senior campaign. Hitting over 200 kills for the first time in his career, the 6-foot-4 outside hitter finished the regular season ranked second on the team with 213 kills (2.80 kills per set ranks ninth in the NEC) for a .266 hitting percentage. Wieberg led the way at the baseline for the Wildcats, totaling a team-high 29 aces and ranking second in the NEC in aces per set (0.38). The top Daemen player on serve receive this season, Weiberg received a team-high 431 receptions and finished the year with a 94.9% reception percentage. He also ranks second on the team in dig (104 total, 1.37 per set) and totaled 23 blocks on the year. Starting 23 of Daemen's 25 total matches, Wieberg hit in the double figures in 11 matches, including a career-high 18 kills against Merrimack on March 8 and tallied his first career double-double against D'Youville on April 18 with 17 kills and 14 digs.
Kyle Zelasko picks up his first career all-conference honor, landing on the Second Team All-NEC and is the only libero represented in the 14-person all-conference teams. Finishing his regular season junior campaign as Daemen's only full-time libero, Zelasko totaled 161 digs -- a Daemen single-season record -- and ranks second in the NEC with 1.87 digs per set this season. The junior posted double-digit digs in seven matches in 2025, and finished with a career-high 15 digs against D'Youville on April 18. 15 digs ties the Daemen single-game record for digs in a four-set match. Playing in 24 of Daemen's 25 total matches this year and playing in a team-high 86 sets on the year, Zelasko finished with a team-high 96.1% reception percentage after totaling 383 receptions and just 15 errors on serve receive. Zelasko played as an outside hitter in one match this season and finished with 13 kills on 33 attacks along with eight digs against LIU on March 28. He finished the season with 56 assists, 24 kills, three aces and four blocks.
Daemen's six all-conference honorees and the rest of the Wildcats are set to play in their third NEC Tournament this weekend in Loretto, Pa. hosted by regular season champion Saint Francis for the third straight year. The Wildcats come in as the No. 3 seed and will face No. 2 seed LIU on Friday at 3 PM. The winner will go on to play the winner of the other semifinal in No. 1 Saint Francis and No. 4 FDU on Saturday at 5 PM. Daemen is the reigning NEC Tournament champions.
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