Tension is rising.
The men’s team is less than 24 hours away from leaving to compete in the 2024 Nationals in Kansas City, Missouri. With 564 teams attending, a record-breaking number for the biggest tournament in NCVF (National Collegiate Volleyball Federation) history.
The team has prepared all year for this tournament. From the three-day, two-hour long sessions, the guys put in a handful of their time to prepare for this.
The practices mostly consisted of back row threes to warm up and 1-2 drills that the team needed to work on whether it was passing, serving, or covering. Then it’s followed up by scrimmaging between the A and B teams.
The men’s team will be competing amongst 48 other teams in the Division II bracket. The team is hoping to place top 15 in the country.
This tournament is a new experience for many of the members of the team. It’s not your typical walk into a college gym, playing the same local teams, see familiar faces. It’s a whole new atmosphere with 50-plus courts, each of them fighting to come out on top.
With the season coming to an end, two seniors dedicated the last 4 years to this club. And what better way to play your last tournament as a Cortland student at Nationals?
Keenan Mulroy:
Keenan Mulroy is a team favorite. A leader on the court and an even better friend off the court. His love and enthusiasm for the game pushes everyone to be better. Keenan is the Vice President and captain of the Cortland team.
His time in volleyball began during his senior year of high school. His best friend, Davis from as long as he can remember, encouraged him to try it out. It started as a joke, just to try something new but he ended up loving it. Keenan is a setter and has played that ever since.
“Growing up I played a lot of baseball,” said Keenan. “People constantly told me to try volleyball because of my height, so my friend and I joined for fun. Davis was good, but I started a little slow.”
Keenan has shown true leadership to his team. His past two years being the starting setter show the improvement he’s made from high school to college. Keenan’s outstanding performance throughout the season earned him a spot on the ECVA’s (Eastern Collegiate Volleyball Association) all-star honorable mentions list.
His final days as a Red Dragon will come to an end as he and the team take on Nationals.
“I’m very excited to have this opportunity to go to Nationals with a bunch of great guys,” said Keenan. “I’ve wanted to go for the past three years I’ve been on this team. We have worked so hard to get to this point, let’s not throw it away.”
Cole Goldstein:
Cole Goldstein is the Libero of the team. He is a senior and the treasurer of the team. One of the loudest on the court, being everywhere and anywhere, he’s always got your back. His aggressiveness and rowdy self on the court do not relate to his calm or smart self off the court.
“I started playing volleyball in 7th grade,” said Cole. “I didn’t enjoy it till high school. The competition in middle school wasn’t the best in my area up until high school. I started as an outside hitter but soon realized that it wasn’t my position. I became a libero in college because I never grew to 6’4.”
With four years being here, this is Cole’s first time attending Nationals. He first heard about it from the upperclassmen when he was a freshman and it sparked a lot of interest.
“Coming into college, I was looking forward to joining the club, ” said Cole. “But since COVID hit, we weren’t able to go to tournaments, all we did was practice. Me being a senior, this year was my last chance, thankfully we had enough money in our budget to have the opportunity to go.”