Wisconsin Volleyball Teams go Head to Head at Nationals

The University of Wisconsin Eau Claire Men’s Club Volleyball team found themselves in a familiar position this past April when they made their third consecutive trip to the NCVF Division II Championship game. Another constant from this game--their final opponent.

The National Collegiate Volleyball Federation or NCVF is the governing body of college club volleyball across the United States. Every year, come April, the top teams in the nation travel to compete in a tournament that culminates in the crowning of a champion in each division. 

This year’s contest was a good one for a few University of Wisconsin schools, as UW-Eau Claire, UW-La Crosse, and UW-Whitewater all made the trip to Kansas City, Mo. for the tournament.

As pool play got underway on Thursday, April 18, Whitewater and La Crosse got off to a perfect start with each program winning all three of their matches of the day. Eau Claire lagged only slightly behind, holding a 2-1 record, dropping a match to Carnegie Mellon University but picking up wins against Sonoma State and Creighton University.

The following day, UW-La Crosse added to their strong tournament resumé, going a perfect 2-for-2 in pool play, while winning every set they competed in. Similarly, Eau Claire and Whitewater went 2-0, although each team dropped at least one set apiece.

These early performances earned all three teams a placement in the Gold bracket of the tournament heading into Championship Saturday. With UW-La Crosse and UW-Eau Claire on opposite ends of the bracket, they had to first battle through high-powered programs such as Michigan Tech, Army, Gonzaga, and St. Thomas, among others.

When St. Thomas edged out Whitewater in the second round of the playoffs, it would be two Midwest teams facing off against one another in the semifinal game, as Eau Claire was set to face the familiar St. Thomas squad. Where Whitewater struggled, Eau Claire found success, handing the Tommies their first loss of the day, and snuffing their title hopes. While St. Thomas took a seat in the stands, the Blugolds were headed to the Championship game.

On the other side of the bracket was La Crosse, who cruised through their first two matches, defeating Central Connecticut State and South Dakota State before running into the U.S. Army Club Volleyball team in the semifinals. Army put up a strong fight, taking the Eagles to three sets. La Crosse came out on top though, winning the final set by five points and punching their ticket to the finals.

The Championship game took place that evening, as the two Wisconsin teams traveled across town to the T-Mobile Center, where they met in the finals for the third time in three years.

Coming into the Title game, the two teams each had a Championship under their belt, with Eau Claire winning it all in 2022, and La Crosse in 2023. It was anyone’s game.

As play got underway, Eau Claire took the first set, narrowly beating La Crosse 25-22. The second set in this best-of-three series also ended with the score at 25-22, although this time it was the Eagles beating the Blugolds.

With the match all knotted up, the two teams went into the third set with the gold medal on their minds.

The final set started off with each team trading big hits, going point for point for a short stretch. Eau Claire began to pull away, going up by as many as six when they led the Eagles 13-7, just two points away from victory. La Crosse wasn’t ready to go down without a fight though, as they clawed their way back into the game, scoring three unanswered points and putting them within striking distance of the Blugolds.

Any rumblings of a La Crosse comeback were put to rest with a big swing from senior Nick Feine when he smacked a ball down for a momentum-shifting kill to bring the score to 14-10. The final point of the game came on a La Crosse hitting violation that would give Eau Claire the win and hand them their second National Championship victory in just three years.

With their win, Eau Claire finishes the season as the number-one ranked Division II Men’s Club program in the nation. Their club record of 28-3 ties La Crosse as the third best in the Division, and top in the Wisconsin Volleyball Conference.

Earning all-tournament honors were all six starting members of UW-Eau Claire’s team with Jackson Peterson and Trey Myers earning first-team all-tournament honors. Second-team honors went to Carson Bakkala, Mason Mortimer, Charles Fenton, and Sam Vodenlich.

For La Crosse, Owen Mursau, Joey Mahan, Keaton Gaffney, and Keegan Kearby earned first-team honors, while Xavier Stueber got a second-team nod.

Finally, in addition to his team’s National Championship win, Nick Feine took home the title of Tournament MVP for his outstanding play over the weekend.

No matter the size of the school or the strength of their schedules, Wisconsin volleyball teams once again showcased their dominance on the court on this national stage.