Penn State finished atop the EIVA for the 35th time in program history to cap the 2023 season. According to conference coaches, they expect the Nittany Lions to capture a 36th title in 2024.
Penn State was the top choice of five of the EIVA’s six head coaches to repeat as champions in their annual preseason vote, taking second behind George Mason on one ballot. Princeton was second in the voting, with the Patriots third.
The Nittany Lions finished 27-4, 10-0 in the EIVA, in 2023. They went on to capture the conference tournament crown for a spot in the NCAA National Collegiate Championship Tournament, falling to Hawaii in five sets in the national semifinals and finished No. 3 in the final AVCA and Off the Block rankings.
All seven Penn State starters earned AVCA All-America honors in 2023, and four return this season including first-team selection Toby Ezeonu. The team has posted undefeated conference schedules each of the last two seasons, bringing 28 consecutive EIVA victories into 2024.
The season begins Jan. 4, 2024, for three EIVA programs, and all six will have played their first matches by Jan. 12.
In addition to ranking the EIVA’s six teams, each coach provided two players to watch from their own programs.
Players to watch
Charleston: Cole Duncanson, Paul Stommel
George Mason: Liam French, Omar Hoyos
Harvard: James Bardin, Ethan Smith
NJIT: Griffin Fieseler, Alessandro Negri
Penn State: Toby Ezeonu, Michal Kowal
Princeton: Owen Mellon, Nyherowo Omene
EIVA Preseason Coaches Poll
As determined in a vote conference coaches
|
Team |
2023 Record |
First-place votes |
Points |
| 1 |
Penn State |
10-0, 27-4 |
5 |
35 |
| 2 |
Princeton |
7-3, 14-12 |
|
27 |
| 3 |
George Mason |
4-6, 13-15 |
1 |
22 |
| 4 |
NJIT |
2-8, 9-18 |
|
|
| 5 |
Charleston |
7-3, 22-7 |
|
|
| 6 |
Harvard |
2-8, 9-16 |
|
|