SPRINGFIELD, Mass. – April 9, 2008 – On Friday evening (April 11) at 5:00 p.m., four men’s volleyball teams will begin their quest to become the Division III national champion at the Molten Invitational Volleyball Championship in Blake Arena on the campus of Springfield College.

University of California, Santa Cruz (14-10), the Midwest-West Region at-large representative, is seeded first and will face North East Collegiate Volleyball Association (NECVA) Tournament champion and fourth-seed Vassar College (25-6) at 8 p.m. ET on April 11. Host Springfield (18-6), a four-time winner of the event, was selected as the second-seed for the Molten championship and will challenge four-time defending champion and third-seed Juniata (10-12) at 5 p.m. ET on April 11. Juniata won the Eastern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association (EIVA) after capturing the conference’s NCAA Division III regular season championship on tiebreakers. The consolation match will be played at 5 p.m. ET on April 12, followed by the championship at 8 p.m. ET. The tournament boasts four of the top five teams according to the April 8 CBS College Sports Network/AVCA Division III Men’s Coaches Top 15 Poll.

Semifinals
Fri., April 11
5:00 pm -- #2 Springfield (18-6) vs. #3 Juniata (10-12)
8:00 pm -- #1 UC-Santa Cruz (14-10) vs. #4 Vassar (25-6)

Final
Sat., April 12
5:00 pm -- Consolation
8:00 pm -- Championship

Ticket Info -- Doors Open at 4 pm each day
$5 -- Adult
$2 -- Students
SPRINGFIELD STUDENTS ALLOWED IN FREE

No. 1 University of California, Santa Cruz
Earning the at-large bid for the Molten Invitational, UC Santa Cruz makes its third overall appearance in the Tournament, all coming in the last five years. Entering the tournament, the Banana Slugs have spent the last four weeks atop the CBS College Sports Network/AVCA Division III Men's Coaches Top 15 Poll and are the top seed in the Invitational. UC Santa Cruz has only taken on one team from this year’s field, squaring off against Vassar in the Nazareth Invitational earlier this season. Santa Cruz had three athletes named to the AVCA Division III All-America First Team, as Bryan Shires, Brad Sullivan, and Austin Einhorn were all honored.

No. 2 Springfield College
Springfield is the second seed in the tournament and is making its seventh appearance in the Molten Invitational and will serve as host for the first time since 2001. The Pride is looking to claim its fifth national crown after last winning the championship in 2003. Springfield has won seven of its last eight matches and has knocked off then No. 3 Juniata and then No. 2 NYU in the past two weeks, both in five game thrillers. For the second consecutive year, the Pride had the Division III Newcomer of the Year, as Cal Palumbo was honored. Palumbo was also selected as an AVCA Division III First Team All-American, while Andy Sipe was also selected as a Second Team All-American.

No. 3 Juniata College
The Juniata Eagles have captured the past four Molten Invitational Championships and are making their record-setting ninth appearance in the Invitational. Juniata earned a berth as the EIVA representative in the field and has been in the championship game each of the past five seasons. This year’s No. 3 seed in the Invitational, the Eagles have played a schedule laden with Division I opponents. The Eagles have played only one other team in the Invitational’s field, as they split a pair of matches with Springfield this year. The Eagles had two players, Matt Werle and Dan Powers, named to the 2008 AVCA Division III All-American Team this season.

No. 4 Vassar College
After capturing the NECVA title in its first year in the league, the Vassar Brewers return to the Molten Invitational for the second time in their history. The last time the Brewers played in the Molten’s was in 2001, which was coincidently hosted by Springfield College. Vassar has won 18 of its last 19 matches, including its last five entering this weekend. The Brewers have the most matches against teams in the field, having played Springfield twice and UC Santa Cruz once. Vassar had three athletes selected to the AVCA Division III All America Team, with Phil Tully and John Kessenich named first-teamers, and Kyle Giunta named to the second team.

published: 04/09/2008