Welcome to the fifth pondtalk of 2025! For those who are knew to the pond, this article is a roundtable discussion amongst the FrogJump contributors (Harvey, Lindsay, and me) about D3VB. We’re all given the same set of questions to answer, and each writer speaks from their own point of view, providing individual insight and opinions regarding the storylines of men’s D3VB.
Which result caught your eye the most this past week?
Harvey: I’ll grab the low hanging fruit and take Messiah 5 set road win at Juniata. This team looks completely different from last year with Kagoro and McConnell holding down the outside hitter positions and have the MAC in position to potentially be a 2 bid league.
Lindsay: I always enjoy highlighting a team that we don’t mention too often. Illinois Wesleyan had a five set victory over # 19 Dominican on Thursday. The same Dominican team that has gone to five with Cal Lu twice. IWU also split a pair of five-set matches with a loss vs Benedictine and a win over Wabash on the weekend. They travel to Springfield College before playing strictly CCIW matches, so it will be interesting to see where they stack up in conference. IWU is only in their fifth year as a program and maybe they’re ready to break out.
Ramius: Two results come to mind for me. First has to be Misericordia over Lasell in their rematch from the Vassar Tri-match this weekend. Misericordia has put together a string of solid results ever since their opening weekend loss to Westminster and are firmly within the top 20 of the landscape at this point following the win over Lasell.
Saving the best for last though, has to be Wabash beating Benedictine. Wabash has come a long way as a program since their founding and their stud Outside BawBaw Thang is proving to be one of the better young pins in the midwest so far. I wouldn’t overlook the Little Giants if they are on your schedule.
At this point in the season, what players have started to enter the player of the year conversation?
Harvey: I could sit here and sing the praises of Andrew Kim for the same time it takes 99 Bottles of Beer on the Wall to whittle down to just 31 bottles. But I won’t do that. Everyone knows the prolificacy of his play on the floor.
I want to introduce Dylan Mulvaney to the conversation. Springfield is currently undefeated against Division III competition with Mulvaney running a sharp, dynamic offense. His 10.42 Assists/Set is good for 3rd in the Country & the Pride are hitting .388 as a team this year. They have a big test with NYU this Friday so we will see how real his bid for NPOY is.
Lindsay: Although he hasn’t been tested too much this year it’s Christian Shaeffer. He’s done it in the past against top teams and there’s no reason to think he won’t do it again. He was the pick before the season and I don’t think anything has changed
Ramius: I’m going with a big dark horse pick here, but Alex Kagoro has been THE GUY for Messiah this year and has truly broken out as a force in the landscape. The Falcons are 10-1 to start the year with a very impressive resume of wins, and a lot of that has to be chalked up to Kagoro doing his best Mason Nissley impression.
What newcomers have started to break out in the national conversation?
Harvey: I’ll talk about two middles who’ve made the transition to the college game look easy. Alain Malcom of Hobart and Luke Rohrbach of Westminster.
Kim may get all the headlines for Hobart (see above) but their middle presence has really grown thanks to Malcom and fellow first-year Josh Reilly. Malcolm is an excellent blocker who has helped slow down some prolific pins in Hobart’s biggest matches and his offensive repertoire is growing as well.
Luke Rohrbach is currently leading the country in blocks/set and was a key piece for the defensive strategy during their upset win over Misericordia earlier this season- will be fun to see him and Westminster continue to grow into the landscape.
Lindsay: There are 4 newcomer setters in the top 15 in assists per set right now. Two are transfers: Gherig Tolman and Logan Brouwer (he’s #1) and two are freshmen: Evan Dziadkowiec and Trystan Maloney. That’s a strong showing for SVU, Aurora, Loras and Lasell. SVU is arguably the best team in the country and the other three all have a true chance at making the NCAA tournament.
Ramius: Given how deep this year has been so far I don’t think its possible for me to only talk about one, but there are three my colleagues haven’t discussed that I do think are worth mentioning; Shawn Zeng (Vassar), Nikko Tenedorio (New Paltz), and Keaton Hendry (Cal Lutheran).
Shawn Zeng as a freshman pin is currently hitting .400 for the undefeated Brewers right now. Nikko Tenedorio has very clearly established himself as the most potent offensive option for the Hawks and is starting to get Pat Wing levels of volume. Keaton Hendry has taken the reins of the Cal Lutheran offense and, despite some hiccups along the way, has them performing like a top 5 team. It’s a great year to be a rookie.
What are some of the best matches to keep our eyes on as we head into this weekend? Who’s potentially on upset alert?
Ramius: NYU’s matches versus Springfield is my pick to watch. NYU is looking to cement their status as top dog in D3VB while Springfield will be looking to prove they belong back amongst the elite of the division.
Harvey: Stevens booked themselves one hell of a week. NYU on Wednesday. Hobart on Friday night. Wentworth on Saturday- they are going to have their hands full with some of the best coached teams and most talented individuals in the country. Excited to see the wizards’ chess match between Sauron (Dan B.) – Saruman (Evin G) – Gandalf (Steve E.)
My upset alert is also going off for MSOE over NCC on Thursday. Something smells fishy with that midwest matchup.
Lindsay: I already mentioned IWU heading out east but I’m watching Springfield vs NYU. That’s a huge matchup in the Morgan Classic. I’ve had both those teams in the top 5 all year. For my upset I’m riding the hot streak of messiah over Vassar. Both teams are off to a great start and Messiah is coming off the big Juniata win.
Who’s your top 5 based on the last week of matches?
Ramius: NYU, SVU, Carthage, Cal Lutheran, Springfield
Harvey: NYU, SVU. Springfield, Cal Lu, Carthage
Lindsay: SVU, NYU, Cal Lutheran, Springfield, Carthage