Geoff Schneider

Men's Volleyball Welcomes Dominican, STAC to Lumsden Gymnasium

2/19/2026 12:19:00 PM

By: CONTACT: Mary Margaret Johnson, Director of Athletics Communications | mmjohnso@daemen.edu

WELCOME BACK
The Daemen University men's volleyball team returns to Lumsden Gymnasium to host a pair of non-conference matches. The Wildcats will take on Dominican (3-9, 0-0 ECC) on Friday at 5 PM and St. Thomas Aquinas (4-7, 0-0 ECC) on Saturday at 1 PM. Daemen went 1-1 on the road last weekend and comes into this homestand with a 4-7 overall record. The Wildcats fell in a five set thriller at Sacred Heart, 2-3, last Saturday but rebounded with a 3-0 sweep over American International on Sunday afternoon.

LAST WEEK
The Wildcats headed to the east coast for their final non-conference road trip of the season and fell, 2-3, against former NEC foe Sacred Heart on Saturday afternoon. After winning the first set, the Wildcats dropped the second and third sets but picked up a fourth set victory to force the match to five, but the Pioneers took the fifth set to win the match. Three Wildcats totaled double-digit kills in the loss with redshirt sophomore Patrick Mullen (Farmingdale, N.J.) leading the way with 17 kills while redshirt senior Billy Wieberg (Grand Island, N.Y.) totaled 16 kills and sophomore Aidan White (Fairport, N.Y.) finished with 12 kills on the night. Junior Jariel Giraud (Orlando, Fla.) posted 44 assists and senior Kyle Zelasko (West Seneca, N.Y.) chipped in 13 digs. Following the Saturday night loss, the Wildcats rebounded with a 3-0 win at AIC on Sunday after posting a .403 hitting percentage in the victory. Sophomore Jonas Drum (Hamburg, N.Y.) led the Wildcats offensively with 11 kills while Jack Rooney (Lakeview, N.Y.) chipped in 10 kills. Redshirt sophomore Eddie Kwarciak (Grand Island, N.Y.) and freshman Jeremiah Laird (Canandaigua, N.Y.) totaled seven and five kills, respectively. Junior Bradyn Winters (Coraopolis, N.Y.) totaled 27 assists in the win.

HOME, SWEET HOME
Daemen has dominated home court over the program's eight seasons, amassing a 46-13 record at Lumsden Gymnasium. Since 2021, the Wildcats have just five home losses, with just two of those losses coming in non-conference matches (vs. Harvard in 2024, vs. St. Francis Brooklyn in 2022) and one loss coming in the postseason as they fell to Penn State in the NCAA Tourmament at home last season.

BACK-TO-BACK
Daemen enters the season as the two-time defending Northeast Conference champions. The Wildcats posted a 15-13 overall record in 2025, including a 4-4 mark in NEC play. Entering the NEC Championship tournament as the No. 3 seed, Daemen knocked off second-seeded LIU, and proceeded to oust top-seeded Saint Francis (Pa.) on their home floor for the second time in as many years. Their reward this time around was being the recipient of the NEC's first-ever automatic bid to the National Collegiate Men's Volleyball Championship. The Wildcats went on to host perennial powerhouse Penn State in the opening round, falling in three sets to end their season.

ALL-CONFERENCE CATS
Daemen placed a program-best six players on the All-NEC teams last season, four of whom return to the roster in 2026. Seniors Maverick O'Neill, Billy Wieberg and Kyle Zelasko, along with junior Jariel Giraud - all Second Team All-NEC selections last season - headline the Wildcats' 14 returners, along with junior Patrick Mullen. O'Neill is the team's most experienced player in the middle, having appeared in 54 matches over the last three seasons. He led the team with 80 blocks last season. Wieberg was the MVP of the NEC tournament, and he returns after averaging a career-best 2.84 kills per set last season. Zelasko has been the team's primary libero for the last two seasons, and he returns after leading the team with 194 digs in 2025. Giraud was limited by injury to 18 matches last season, his first as a starter, but still led the team in assists (602). Mullen will look to take his game to another level after posting 209 kills and 23 service aces last season.

BIG SHOES TO FILL
Perhaps the biggest question going into the season is how the Wildcats will fill the massive void left by the graduation of Zach Schneider. A three-time All-NEC First Team and two-time AVCA All-America honorable mention selection, Schneider appeared in 117 matches over parts of six seasons with the Wildcats. He left as the program's all-time leader in matches played, kills (1,483), service aces (156) and digs (625).

WHAT'S NEW
The Wildcats' 19-man roster features five newcomers, all of whom are first-year collegiate players. The greenhorns include 6-foot-1 defensive specialist Lucas Pynn, 6-foot-3 setter Rocco Lucci, 6-foot-7 middle hitter/right side Harrison Vargo, 6-foot-7 middle hitter/right side Jeremiah Laird and 6-foot-5 outside hitter/right side Charlie Allesi.

WHERE WE HEADED?
All over the place is the simple answer. The Wildcats' 2026 schedule includes matches in eight different states - California, West Virginia, Pennsylvania, Indiana, Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Jersey and, of course, New York. After returning from the season-opening trip to SoCal, Daemen will participate in four-team events hosted by Charleston (W.Va.) (Jan. 16-17) and Saint Francis (Jan. 24-25), before making their home debut Jan. 27 against Roberts Wesleyan. A trip to Indiana in early February to face former Wildcat head coach Don Gleason and his Purdue Fort Wayne team highlights the early portion of the schedule. Northeast Conference play gets underway Feb. 27 with new member Manhattan visiting Lumsden Gymnasium. Daemen's rivalry with D'Youville takes center take in early March with the teams playing twice over a three day span (Mar. 3 at Daemen, Mar. 5 at DYU). The Wildcats visit Saint Francis for a rematch of last season's NEC Championship final on Mar. 20-21. The 2026 regular season concludes with LIU visiting Lumsden Gymnasium on Apr. 10-11. The NEC Championship tournament will be hosted by the No. 1 seed, with semifinals slated for Apr. 24 and finals on Apr. 25.

CO-FAVORITES
Daemen has been picked as the co-favorite in the 2026 NEC Men's Volleyball Preseason Coaches' Poll. The Wildcats picked up three first-place votes, and finished tied with Saint Francis University (Pa.) atop the poll. Daemen enters the 2026 campaign as the two-time defending NEC champions. LIU and FDU each received one first-place vote, and finished third and fourth, respectively, in the poll. New NEC members Manhattan and Maryland Eastern Shore occupied poll positions five and six, respectively, while D'Youville was picked seventh to round it out.

SCOUTING THE CHARGERS
Playing in just their third season, Dominican comes into Friday's match with a 3-9 overall record and is on a three-match losing streak. The Chargers average 11.2 kills per set and are led offensively by junior outside hitters Phinehas Wiley with 189 kills (4.02/set) and Ayden Shaw with 119 kills (2.53/set). Junior middle blocker Tommaso Falchi is the Chargers' biggest defensive weapon at the net, leading the team with 33 total blocks.

SERIES HISTORY
This marks the third time that the Wildcats and Chargers meet on the court. Daemen has won 3-0 in both previous matches.

SCOUTING THE SPARTANS
Opening up the 2026 season with matches powerhouses Pepperdine, USC, and Penn State in three of their first four matches, St. Thomas Aquinas comes into Saturday with a 4-7 record and is riding a two-match win streak with 3-0 wins over Sacred Heart and LIU. Over 11 matches, the Spartans average 11.38 kills/set and are led by junior outside hitter Kyran Versteegen with 118 kills (3.28/set) and freshman opposite Jakob Schwarz with 97 kills (2.77/set). Averaging 1.95 blocks/set as a team, junior David Weiss leads the Spartans with 36 total blocks (1.0/set).

SERIES HISTORY
The Wildcats and Spartans are 1-1 all-time. Daemen took the first ever meeting in 2024 and STAC won the last match in 2025.

UP NEXT
The Wildcats open NEC play next weekend as they host Manhattan on Friday (Feb. 27 at 6 PM) and Saturday (Feb. 28 at 2 PM).

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