Welcome to the sixth Pondtalk of 2025! Sorry for the break last week, but we are back for our regularly scheduled content. For those who are knew to the pond, this article is a roundtable discussion amongst the Frogjump contributors (Harvey, Lindsay, and myself) 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.
General observations as we enter the midway point of the 2025 season?
Ramius: Given what we’ve seen this year so far, I think NYU and SVU have firmly established themselves as the #1 and #2 teams in the landscape. SVU has quite a few ranked tests coming up in March but I think they are likely the favorites in all of those games and I’d be shocked if they got upset. I think these two teams are on a collision course for the NCAA championship right now (similar to 2016 when New Paltz and Springfield were destined to meet in the finals).
Harvey: We are headed for another insane NCAA Tournament. Outside of the top 2 (NYU & SVU) I think anyone ranked 3-30 is susceptible to be upset if you don’t bring your B+ game, so thinking ahead to the NCAA Quarterfinals specifically, where 3 of 4 matches went to 5 sets, I think we are headed towards another year of intensely close competition.
Lindsay: I did a quick search of the Cal Lutheran and Santa Cruz schedules to see what big tourneys they would be hosting. I didn’t find anything which was surprising to me. Other big schools are playing much more in conference. One team that looks to have a fun March schedule is Southern Virginia. They have, in order, Juniata, Misericordia, Wentworth and Springfield for teams ranked in the top 20 right now. I plan on following SVU this month. I’ve had them #1 all year and I’m guessing that doesn’t change.
Which result caught your eye the most this past week?
Harvey: While I had Loras over NCC as an eye popper, for the sake of variety I’ll give another. Juniata decimated the competition at the Eagle Invite with 4 wins and 3 sweeps. They also hit .453 with 78 Kills in their 5 set win over Wittenberg so I don’t know if that one qualifies as super stressful. The Eagles have quietly collected a nice stable of quality wins.
Lindsay: Was this a bit of a quieter week than usual or is it just me? There weren’t any huge upsets but I do think the Loras win over North Central was a significant conference win. I know I’ve talked about NCC in previous weeks but maybe we haven’t given enough love to Loras?? Corey Mayotte was a beast but collectively this group looks really strong. They held NCC to .102 in the match and were in control after set 1. I’m paying attention from here on in.
Ramius: Springfield over Vassar I think had to be the most significant result from the past week. Vassar escaped close games throughout the year to be undefeated until they came to Alden street. The game was behind a paywall, but for those of you who missed it don’t worry. Springfield was firmly in control of the match, only one set was truly competitive. Huge win for the Pride in terms of NCAA selection chances, as the new NPI system got away from automatic Independent bids.
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: Two matches for the Ducks this week should be on a lot of radars. Friday they play Misericordia in a game I think has a lot of potential. This is the best Cougars team to exist in the program’s history, and if Baldwin Wallace can go to five with Stevens you best be sure Misericordia can pull an upset. They don’t have much time to rest though, as they follow that game up with a match against Springfield who will be riding some momentum following their win over Vassar this past week.
Harvey: The NACC crown is on the line Thursday night as Dominican and Aurora square off. I feel like everyone has been waiting for Aurora to burst through that glass ceiling for a few years, this match will tell us a lot about them. For an upset pick, I could see Hobart taking it to NYU on Saturday. The pressure of an undefeated regular season can be a lot, and Andrew Kim could easily take that match over and carry the Statesmen to victory
Lindsay: You know I like themes. I’m really excited for the Loras vs Carthage match on Saturday! Here’s the list of teams these two have lost to: Southern Virginia, Stevens, Cal Lutheran. That’s a good list. There are big playoff and NCAA implications with these two teams as they move into almost exclusively their CCIW schedules. For an upset give me St John Fisher over Vassar. I don’t believe Vassar is operating at 100% right now. Either way I think it will be a close match between the two
Who’s your top 5 based on the last week of matches?
Ramius: NYU, SVU, Cal Lutheran, Carthage, Juniata
Harvey:NYU, SVU, Cal Lutheran, Carthage, Springfield
Lindsay: SVU, NYU, Cal Lutheran, Springfield, Carthage