No. 20 Men's Volleyball to Start 2025 Season in Hawaii, California

MANOA, Hawaii - The McKendree men's volleyball team and 12th-year head coach Nickie Sanlin are set to begin their 2025 season with a trip to Hawaii and California. The Bearcats will face the University of Hawaii on Friday, Jan. 3 at 7 PM HST and Sunday, Jan. 5 at 5 PM HST. McKendree will then travel to California to play against UC San Diego on Tuesday, Jan. 7 at 7 PM PST.

The American Volleyball Coaches Association released their preseason national rankings on Monday, December 30th. The Bearcats will open the 2025 season ranked 20th in the poll.

McKendree returns 17 players from last season including All-MIVA First Team honoree senior outside hitter Kevin Schuele and Second Team selections junior libero Yadiel Diaz and senior middle blocker D'Aaron McCraney. The Bearcats also return fifth-year opposite hitter Nikos Xydakis who averaged 2.94 kills per set and junior middle blocker Rolen Lively who led the team in blocks last season with 83.0 blocks.

The Bearcats face Hawaii for the third time in program history. The two schools met at Bringham Young University in March of 2019. McKendree and UC San Diego have had three matchups, the last in January 2020.

Live Statistics will be available for all three games. Friday's match against Hawaii and Tuesday's game versus UC San Diego can be viewed via pay-per-view on ESPN+. Sunday's match against Hawaii will be broadcast on the radio on ESPN Honolulu.

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Players Mentioned

#6 Yadiel Diaz: DS/L; 5' 6"; Junior

#24 Rolen Lively: MB; 6' 8"; Junior

#19 Kevin Schuele: OH; 6' 4"; Senior

#18 Nikos Xydakis: OPP; 6' 7"; Redshirt Senior

#23 D'Aaron McCraney: MB; 6' 9"; Senior

Players Mentioned

#6 Yadiel Diaz
: 5' 6"; Junior
: DS/L

#24 Rolen Lively
: 6' 8"; Junior
: MB

#19 Kevin Schuele
: 6' 4"; Senior
: OH

#18 Nikos Xydakis
: 6' 7"; Redshirt Senior
: OPP

#23 D'Aaron McCraney
: 6' 9"; Senior
: MB