MILWAUKEE, Wis. (naccsports.org) --- Three-time defending league champion Aurora University has been installed as a near-unanimous favorite to capture the 2026 Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference (NACC) men's volleyball crown.
The Spartans secured 24 of a possible 26 first-place votes from the conference's head coaches and athletics communications professionals to top the poll with 336 points. Milwaukee School of Engineering secured the final two first-place votes and sits second with 306 points, while Benedictine University edged Dominican University, 281-271, for third place.
Edgewood University and Concordia University Chicago tied for fifth place on 189 points apiece, just six markers clear of Illinois Institute of Technology (183) in seventh place. Concordia University Wisconsin (153) has been picked to secure the eighth-and-final spot in the NACC Tournament. Marian University (132), Wisconsin Lutheran College (120), St. Norbert College (107), Lakeland University (65), and Rockford University (34) round out this year's poll.
2025 Review
Aurora won the 2025 title with an 11-1 mark in conference play, finishing one game clear of Benedictine and MSOE, and two clear of Dominican. The Spartans' lone NACC loss came to Benedictine. Aurora capped the regular-season with a five-set win at MSOE, then swept Illinois Tech and Dominican in its first two NACC Tournament games before capturing the program's first NACC tournament title with another five-set victory over the Raiders - this time in front of a partisan home crowd at Thornton Gymnasium.
The Spartans (26-5) were selected to the field of the 2025 NCAA Division III Men's Volleyball Championship, falling to Carthage, 3-0, in the first round.
Aurora junior outside hitter Josh McLellan and senior libero Alex Nonhof both earned all-region honors from the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA), while McLellan was named to the AVCA Division III All-America First Team.
Preseason Poll/Honors
Four NACC programs are receiving votes in the 2026 AVCA Division III Men's Preseason Poll. Aurora is 10th with 335 points, while Benedictine (45), MSOE (28), and Dominican (10) are receiving votes. Additionally, Aurora sits eighth in the FrogJump Preseason Top 10. McLellan was also one of four unanimous selections to the 20-member FrogJump Preseason All-America Teams.
2026 Schedule
Lakeland will be the first NACC program to get is season underway, opening its 2026 slate tomorrow with a triangular against Trine and Mount St. Joseph at Angola, Indiana. The majority of programs will open their schedules the following weekend with Benedictine, Concordia Chicago, Concordia Wisconsin, and Illinois Tech starting on Thursday, Jan. 15, Dominican and Marian on Friday, Jan. 16, and Edgewood and MSOE on Saturday, Jan. 17. The final four programs - Wisconsin Lutheran (Jan. 23), Aurora (Jan. 24), Rockford (Jan. 27), and St. Norbert (Jan. 29) - all get underway over the final two weeks of January.
Lakeland will also take part in the first NACC match on the schedule, hosting Dominican on Thursday, Jan. 29. A trio of matches follow in early February before the first full week of NACC competition Tuesday-Thursday, Feb. 17-19. The regular season concludes with five matches on Saturday, April 4.
2026 Tournament
The top eight teams in the final regular-season standings will qualify for the 2026 NACC Men's Volleyball Tournament. Quarterfinal matches will be held Tuesday, April 7, with the winners advancing to the tournament semifinals on Saturday, April 11. The tournament final will be held on Sunday, April 12. The quarterfinal round will be hosted on campus sites, while the semifinals and final will be hosted by the highest-seeded quarterfinal winner. The NACC Tournament champion receives the conference's automatic berth in the 2026 NCAA Division III Men's Volleyball Championship.
2026 NACC Men's Volleyball Preseason Poll
| Institution (FPV) |
Points |
| Aurora University (24) |
336 |
| Milwaukee School of Engineering (2) |
306 |
| Benedictine University |
281 |
| Dominican University |
271 |
| Edgewood University |
189 |
| Concordia University Chicago |
189 |
| Illinois Institute of Technology |
183 |
| Concordia University Wisconsin |
153 |
| Marian University |
132 |
| Wisconsin Lutheran College |
120 |
| St. Norbert College |
107 |
| Lakeland University |
65 |
| Rockford University |
34 |
Jan. 5 - AVCA Division III MVB Preseason Poll
| Rank |
School (First-Place Votes Adjusted) |
Total Points Adjusted |
Record |
Previous Week |
| 1 |
Springfield |
588 |
0-0 |
NR |
| 2 |
Carthage |
533 |
0-0 |
NR |
| 3 |
Juniata |
499 |
0-0 |
NR |
| 4 |
Southern Virginia |
471 |
0-0 |
NR |
| 5 |
Messiah |
449 |
0-0 |
NR |
| 6 |
Stevens |
441 |
0-0 |
NR |
| 7 |
Vassar |
435 |
0-0 |
NR |
| 8 |
NYU |
409 |
0-0 |
NR |
| 9 |
Cal Lutheran |
374 |
0-0 |
NR |
| 10 |
Aurora |
335 |
0-0 |
NR |
| 11 |
Wentworth |
272 |
0-0 |
NR |
| 12 |
SUNY New Paltz |
264 |
0-0 |
NR |
| 13 |
UC Santa Cruz |
253 |
0-0 |
NR |
| 14 |
Loras |
133 |
0-0 |
NR |
| 15 |
Baldwin-Wallace |
120 |
0-0 |
NR |
| 16 |
Hobart |
101 |
0-0 |
NR |
| 17 |
St. John Fisher |
89 |
0-0 |
NR |
| 18 |
North Central (IL) |
78 |
0-0 |
NR |
| 19 |
MIT |
67 |
0-0 |
NR |
| 20 |
Misericordia |
62 |
0-0 |
NR |
Others receiving votes and listed on two or more ballots: Benedictine (IL) 45; Lasell 43; Rutgers-Newark 37; Mount Union 34; Nazareth 32; MSOE 28; Nichols 21; Randolph-Macon 20; Marymount 14; Dominican 10; Baruch 7; Buffalo State 7; Wittenberg 3; 3 teams mentioned on only one ballot for 26 points