Men's Volleyball | 1/13/2026 12:00:00 PM
TRAFFORD, Pa. (pacathletics.org) - After capturing the initial Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) men's volleyball title last spring, Thiel College was selected to finish first in this year's conference preseason poll in the sport, per voting of the conference's head coaches. The poll, as well as a Players to Watch list, was released Tuesday afternoon.
The 2025 season was the first year for men's volleyball in the PAC and Thiel made a remarkable run on their way to the conference crown. The Tomcats rolled through the regular season with a 12-0 record to earn the top seed for the PAC Tournament. Once in the playoffs, Thiel swept Saint Vincent College in the semifinals and Grove City College in the championship game to also earn the PAC's automatic berth in the NCAA Tournament. The Tomcats dropped a 3-1 decision to Saint Joseph's-Long Island in the play-in round to complete the year with a 22-7 record, which set a single-season program record for wins.
The Tomcats, who will be guided by first-year head coach Henry Gorton, collected six first-place votes and totaled 36 points to top this season's preseason poll. Gorton joined Thiel after three successful seasons as an assistant coach at St. John Fisher College, a perennial NCAA Division III powerhouse. During his tenure, the Cardinals compiled a 73-23 record and qualified for the NCAA Tournament in 2023 with a 24-8 mark.
Last year's runner-up Grove City took second in the preseason poll with 29 points, including the final first-place vote. In their initial year as a varsity program, the Wolverines went 8-4 against conference teams in the regular season to earn the No. 2 seed for the PAC Tournament and knocked off Hiram College 3-1 in the semifinals to earn a spot in the title game.
Saint Vincent finished third in the preseason poll with 25 points, while Chatham University and Hiram tied for fourth with 18 points each. Rounding out the polling is Geneva College in sixth with 15 points and Bethany College with six points.
The Players to Watch list is highlighted by 17 players who earned All-PAC accolades last year. Thiel sophomore outside hitter Ezra Oesterling is the only major award winner returning, as he collected both the Player of the Year and the Newcomer of the Year honors.
Oesterling recorded a remarkable freshman campaign. He was the PAC leader in total kills with 425 and aces with 46, while ranking second in kills per set (3.94) and fourth in hitting percentage (.280). The 6'3" outside hitter posted 13 or more kills in nine PAC matches, highlighted by a 16-kill performance on .652 hitting in the PAC Championship Game sweep over Grove City and was named to the All-Tournament Team following the final match.
Also back for the Tomcats are two other First Team selections in senior middle blocker Kaleb Proudfoot and junior setter Ben Lowell. Proudfoot, also an All-Tournament Team selection last year, led the PAC in hitting percentage a season ago at .413, while Lowell was second in the league with 9.41 assists per set.
Three others who finished in the top five in the conference in kills return after earning First Team All-PAC last spring. Saint Vincent senior Shawn McSwiggen was second with 332 kills, while Chatham junior Ben Shelestak was third with 288 and Hiram senior Derek Chiang tied for fifth with 271 kills.
The Players to Watch list also includes 12 players who made the PAC Academic Honor Roll, including six after they earned a 3.6 GPA or higher during the 2025 spring semester.
The league’s regular season concludes Saturday, April 4th with the six-team PAC Championship Tournament scheduled to get underway Tuesday, April 7th. The title match is slated for Saturday, April 11th. The top two seeds will receive quarterfinal byes and all tournament matches will be hosted by the higher seed. The PAC Tournament champion will receive an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament, with the Tournament field set to be announced on Monday, April 13th.
| 2026 PAC Men's Volleyball Preseason Coaches' Poll (Predicted order of finish) |
| School (first-place votes) |
Points |
2025 record |
| 1. Thiel College (6) |
36 |
22-7 (12-0 PAC) |
| 2. Grove City College (1) |
29 |
14-15 (8-4 PAC) |
| 3. Saint Vincent College |
25 |
11-113 (5-7 PAC) |
| 4t. Chatham University |
18 |
7-14 (4-8 PAC) |
| 4t. Hiram College |
18 |
16-10 (7-5 PAC) |
| 6. Geneva College |
15 |
11-16 (6-6 PAC) |
| 7. Bethany College |
6 |
2-22 (0-12 PAC) |
2026 PAC Men's Volleyball Players to Watch
| Bethany College |
| Name |
Yr. |
Pos. |
Hometown | High School |
| Riley Burdett (HM) |
So. |
OH |
Jefferson Hills, Pa./Thomas Jefferson |
| Zachary Kay |
Fr. |
S |
Little Egg Harbor, N.J./James Monroe |
| Braeden Reedus |
Fr. |
OH |
Blacklick, Ohio/Reynoldsburg |
| Cole Thomas |
So. |
L |
Lindside, W.Va./James Monroe |
| Rylan Trapp |
Jr. |
MB |
Belleville, Ill./Belleville Township |
| Chatham University |
| Name |
Yr. |
Pos. |
Hometown/High School |
| Armani George |
Fr. |
MH |
Reading, Pa./Governor Mifflin |
| Tim McCabe (S) |
Jr. |
RS |
North Huntingdon, Pa./Norwin |
| RJ Nagg (HM) |
So. |
S |
Erie, Pa./McDowell |
| Derek Paul |
Fr. |
OH |
Mechanicsburg, Pa./Cumberland Valley |
| Ben Shelestak (1) |
Jr. |
OH |
Pittsburgh, Pa./Fox Chapel |
| Geneva College |
| Name |
Yr. |
Pos. |
Hometown/High School |
| Owen Kelley (HM) |
Jr. |
OH |
Greensburg, Pa./Hempfield |
| Evan Puhl (2) |
Sr. |
MB |
McMurray, Pa./Peters Township |
| Daniel Spear |
Jr. |
MB |
Pittsburgh, Pa./North Hills |
| Andrew Ubinger (2) |
Sr. |
S/RS |
Valencia, Pa./North Catholic |
| Grove City College |
| Name |
Yr. |
Pos. |
Hometown/High School |
| Evan DiMalanta |
Fr. |
OH |
Medina, Ohio/Highland |
| Craig Fair (HM) |
Jr. |
S |
Stevens, Pa./Cocalico |
| Andrew Kessler |
Jr. |
MB |
Jeannette, Pa./Penn Trafford |
| Tieg Malcolm (2) |
Sr. |
MB |
New Philadelphia, Ohio/Homeschooled |
| Keith Otto (HM) |
So. |
OH |
Irwin, Pa./Penn-Trafford |
| Hiram College |
| Name |
Yr. |
Pos. |
Hometown/High School |
| Derek Chiang (1) |
Sr. |
OH |
Markham, Ontario/Pierre Elliott Trudeau |
| Liam Dwyer |
Fr. |
MB/OPP |
Pittsburgh, Pa./Mt. Lebanon |
| Cullen Sivak |
Sr. |
OH |
Akron, Ohio/St. Vincent-St. Mary |
| Kekoa Tani |
Fr. |
S/OPP |
Kaneohe, Hawaii/Castle |
| Dakotah Welsh |
Jr. |
L |
Stow Ohio/Bio-Med Science Academy |
| Saint Vincent College |
| Name |
Yr. |
Pos. |
Hometown/High School |
| Jackson Genicola (HM) |
So. |
DS |
North Huntingdon, Pa./Norwin |
| Rocco Marino |
Jr. |
MH |
Latrobe, Pa./Greater Latrobe |
| Shawn McSwiggen (1) |
Sr. |
OPP |
Pittsburgh, Pa./Thomas Jefferson |
| Tyler Nelson (HM) |
Sr. |
OH |
Greensburg, Pa./Greater Latrobe |
| Zeb Wyant (2) |
Sr. |
OH |
Martinsburg, Pa./Central |
| Thiel College |
| Name |
Yr. |
Pos. |
Hometown/High School |
| Ben Lowell (1) |
Jr. |
S |
Portland, Ore./Sunset |
| Ezra Oesterling (1) |
So. |
OH |
Shelocta, Pa./West Shamokin |
| Eli Olszowka |
Jr. |
S |
Erie, Pa./Mercyhurst Prep |
| Kaleb Proudfoot (1) |
Sr. |
MB |
Butler, Pa./Butler |
| Will Zimmerman |
Sr. |
OH |
Cranberry Twp., Pa./Seneca Valley |