It has been an exciting start to the collegiate Men's Volleyball season, and our Bay to Bay alumni have been very busy throughout January. Check out how each active alumni and their team is doing thus far!
Joel Schneidmiller (UC Irvine): The Freshman outside hitter has helped his Anteater squad off to a fast start, compiling a 9-1 overall record and a #4 national ranking. Joel has been named the Big West Freshman of the Week two times this season, and this week was named Big West Athlete of the Week after helping UC Irvine win back-to-back matchups against perennial powerhouse BYU totaling 15 & 19 kills respectively.
Alex Li (NYU): The outside hitter returns for his sophomore campaign after being named an AVCA Dlll First Team All-American last year. Thus far throughout the season, Alex is hitting an efficient .300 and has contributed 7 service aces.
Markus Melbardis (Loyola-Chicago): The Junior outside hitter and the Ramblers have earned themselves #7 spot in the national rankings with the help of a 6-2 overall record. Markus and his team will take on the USC Trojans this upcoming Saturday.
Wyatt Harrison (UCSD): The freshman outside hitter has made some early contributions in his young career appearing in every match thus far. Averaging 1 kill per set and passing a team best .975 reception average Wyatt has begun to carve out a role for the Tritons. For his efforts against McKendree, Wyatt was nominated as a final candidate for Big West Freshman of the Week!
Kevin Orsley (Emmanuel College): Orsley and the Saints have gone 2-3 thus far, falling in 5 sets to fellow Bay to Bay alums Andrew Zhu and Alex Li (NYU). Kevin is averaging over 1 kill per set and is second on the team in aces. Next up, Emmanuel will be at M.I.T. to play Bay to Bay alum Nathan Wang.
Andrew Zhu (NYU): The senior outside hitter has helped the Violets to a 4-2 overall start with big wins over Emmanuel College and Wentworth Institute of Technology. Check out Andrew's interview after their 5-set match against Emmanuel College below.
Kyle Bugge (Lewis): Bugge and the Flyers started the season off playing a gauntlet of top-5 teams, throughout the early portion of the season Lewis has gone 5-3 and beating teams like UCSB and CSUN. Kyle has contributed 25 kills and 15 digs thus far for the #11 Lewis Flyers, and they will have a matchup with the USC Trojans at home this Friday.
Andrew Weisner (UC Merced): The Junior middle blocker and the Bobcats have gone 2-4 thus far throughout the season, their victories have come over Menlo College and Hope International and their losses have come against Division 1 schools UCSD and CSUN. Next up for the Bobcats, another tilt with Menlo College.
Sean Staskus (UC San Diego): The freshman outside hitter and the Tritons currently sit just outside the top-15 nationally (receiving 6 votes in the poll). With big wins over non-conference foes Concordia-Irvine and McKendree, Staskus and the Tritons will look to carry their momentum into this weekend with matches against Princeton and Stanford.
Cameron Ponce (Johnson & Wales): Through the first 8 matches of the season, the Wildcats sit at 3-5 after facing some of the top Dlll schools in the nation. Currently Cameron is averaging almost 6 assists per set and sits at second on the team in total digs.
Ben VanDerLuit (Concordia-Irvine): The sophomore setter and the Concordia Eagles have had a successful transition into the MPSF power conference. Thus far, Concordia is 3-1 including a huge road win over #9 ranked CSUN. Next up, Ben and the Eagles will run the gauntlet against #1 ranked Long Beach and #3 ranked UCLA.
Bailey Mundy (NJIT): Mundy and the Highlanders have played a grueling road schedule thus far throughout the season, playing at #1 Long Beach State, #3 UCLA, #11 Northridge, #4 UC Irvine, and #10 Grand Canyon. Mundy is currently hitting .215 on the season.
Nathan Wang (M.I.T.): Coming into his first collegiate season, Nathan has made the transition to outside hitter and is currently averaging 2 kills per set as well as being tied for the team lead in service aces. The Engineers are currently 3-0 in their young season, and will take on Emerson College next.
Nathan Smith (Penn State): Nathan and the Nittany Lions are currently ranked #9 in the national poll. Sitting at 3-2 in the early portion of the season, Penn State has faced tough competition in #2 Ohio State and #3 UCLA. During a rod trip out to Los Angeles for the Pac-12/Big-10 challenge, Penn State won an epic 5-set match against USC. Next up, Penn State will face off against Ball State and IPFW.
Aleks Melbardis (Stevenson): The Freshman setter and the Mustangs have gone 2-4 to start the season. Alex is averaging 3 assists per set, playing a reserve role for head coach Aldis Berzins. Aleks and the Mustangs just concluded a West Coast trip playing in the UC Santa Cruz Slug Slam, next up they will take on SUNY New Platz in Arlington, VA.
Shea Filardo (Menlo College): In their first year as a varsity sport, Menlo College currently stands at 3-6 overall. Shea leads the team in assists, dishing out 7.4 per set and averaging 1 dig per set. Next up for the Oaks is a matchup with Hope International and UC Santa Cruz.
