The California Lutheran University menโs volleyball team made it to the Final Four of the NCAA DIII Tournament, where their season ended on a three-set loss to Springfield College, the eventual runner-up to first-time national champion Southern Virginia University.
This is the second season in a row, and in program history, that the Kingsmen have earned a bid into the NCAA Tournament, after winning it all last year.
Head Menโs Volleyball Coach Kevin Judd said the Kingsmen have persevered through the challenge of distance,ย in regards to how often they have to travel to face teams.
โTo travel, to do everything that we needed to do to qualify and get into this tournament, certainly says a lot, and to then be flown 2,800 miles out to New York City was pretty wild,โ Judd said.
The Kingsmen earned their spot in the tournament following a five-set victory over the No. 18 University of California, Santa Cruz Banana Slugs in both teamsโ last regular-season match of the year.
The Kingsmen flew to New York for the first two rounds of the NCAA Tournament, hosted by the No. 1 New York University Violets. Judd said he was not expecting to hear that the team was headed to NYU.
โ[I was] shocked that we were going to NYU. I think watching that show, we were just like, โWhoa,โ you know, taken aback for a moment,โ Judd said.
In the first round of the tournament, the Kingsmen faced Vassar College, the team they beat in the NCAA finals last year. Judd said he was shocked and nervous to find out that Vassar would be the Kingsmenโs opponent in the first round.
โWe see that itโs Vassar, and Iโm like, โOh my gosh, this is the team that we faced in the finals last year,โ which makes it scary because those guys wanted redemption,โ Judd said.
The Kingsmen defeated Vassar in four sets. While Vassar took the first set 25-19, the Kingsmen took the following three sets (25-17, 25-15, and 25-20) to secure the victory and advance to the second round.
โI just knew that Vassar was gonna come out and play us tough, and they certainly did in that first set,โ Judd said.
The Kingsmen advanced to the second round of the tournament to face the undefeated Violets. Senior opposite hitter Michael Stahl said the Kingsmen went into that match as the underdogs.
โWe had a lot of doubters going in,โ Stahl said. โOne of the volleyball accounts, whatever, that runs DIII, they said we had, like, a 25% chance of winning.โ
The Kingsmen handed the Violets their first loss in over a year as they came out on top in four sets (25-18 L, 25-22 W, 28-26 W, and 25-20 W). Graduate outside hitter Jordan Cooper ended the fourth set with a service ace. Judd said Cooperโs match-ending service ace against NYU was reminiscent of the one he recorded against Stevens Institute of Technology in the Final Four of last yearโs NCAA Tournament.
โHe happens to just nail that back corner like he did against Stevens, and the celebration as soon as we walked out on the court, thatโs the first thing he said to me, โJust like Stevens, Coach,โโ Judd said.
After returning home for a few days the following week, the Kingsmen flew back east to Salem, Virginia, where they faced Springfield College in the NCAA Final Four. Stahl said a lot of hard work and preparation went into that match.
โA lot of film, watching the team practice and preparing for that game, taking care of our bodies, getting good sleep, eating right, but just really watching the team play and seeing if we can pick up on any tendencies they may have, and just practicing that with our practice times that we had there in Salem,โ Stahl said.
The Kingsmen fell to the Pride in three sets (25-19, 25-16, and 25-17), marking the end of their season. Stahl said he did not feel as though the Kingsmen played their best in that match, but remains proud of the teamโs season as a whole.
โDefinitely could have played better, in my opinion, me personally, and then as a team, I think we all feel the same way,โ Stahl said. โNot how, obviously, you want to end a year, but still proud of our season.โ
By the end of the NCAA Tournament, the Kingsmen finished out the 2025 season 23-7 overall. Judd said he is proud of his team for reaching this point again.
โJust so proud of the resiliency and the fight that the boys had in them to get the job done and give us another opportunity to get back to the National Championship tournament,โ Judd said.
