Lopuch, Saint Xavier Top Men's Volleyball Postseason Honor Roll
CHICAGO --- Saint Xavier University came away the big winner on the court again this season with both another Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference regular-season and tournament championship and on Monday the Cougar program was the same off the court when the league office announced its 2024 men's volleyball postseason honor roll.
SXU's team garnered the most first-team all-conference selections (three), the most overall picks (five), three of the five top individual awards and a total of eight accolades in all. Judson University was next in line with six awards followed by Olivet Nazarene University with five. The latter tied Saint Xavier with the most first-team choices.
Tournament and regular-season runner-up Calumet College of St. Joseph, meanwhile, totaled four awards with Viterbo University, Trinity Christian College and St. Ambrose University each securing two honors. Roosevelt University was also represented with one spot on the second team.
The all-conference roster was split into two teams of 12 players each in addition to the five top individual awards. Judson University was also named as the CCAC Champions of Character Team.
Two-thirds – eight players – of the first team were familiar faces from one year ago, including St. Ambrose's Nick Fox (Elmwood Park, Ill.), Olivet Nazarene's Tomas Gonzalez (Bogota, Columbia) and Saint Xavier's Jan Lopuch (Krakow, Poland) and Andres Velez (Toa Baja, Puerto Rico). They were all repeat selections.
Making the team for the third straight year were Calumet St. Joseph's Pedro Castillo (Barquisimeto, Venezuela) and Francis Hauze (Belize City, Belize), Judson's Elijah Wrobel (Bloomingdale, Ill.) and Trinity Christian's Alex Costa (Oak Lawn, Ill.). For Costa, it completed a run of four consecutive years as an all-league pick, including being a member of the second team his freshman year.
Claiming the top award – CCAC Player of the Year – was Lopuch, who ranks first in the league and sixth nationally with his .354 attack percentage. The junior outside hitter also sits among the top six players in four other categories, including fourth in service aces (35) and receptions (550). He is fifth in kills (320) and aces per set (0.36) and sixth in kills per set (3.3).
Wrobel captured his second straight CCAC Setter of the Year award after leading the league in assists for the second year in a row. He totaled 1,002 assists over his 30 matches and 107 sets played for a 9.36 average. The junior's other top marks in the league consisted of 36 aces (third), 0.34 aces per set (seventh), 195 digs (ninth) and 1.82 digs per set (tenth).
Also repeating as the CCAC Libero of the Year was Velez. The sophomore's numbers included his 315 digs and 3.03 digs per set, both of which were third best in the conference. His 506 receptions ranked tenth.
Garnering recognition as the CCAC Freshman of the Year was McAfee, who boasted the second-best hitting percentage (.271) and the third-most kills (327) in the league. He was also fourth in kills per set (3.55), seventh in blocks per set (0.86) and eighth in total blocks (79).
Recognized as the CCAC Coach of the Year for the second consecutive season was Saint Xavier's Tom Ryan. He has guided the Cougars to five straight tournament crowns and four regular-season titles in a row. This year's team went 10-0 during the league's regular season and won 36 of 38 sets against CCAC foes, including the tournament.
The Cougar head to the NAIA National Championships as the No. 7-ranked team in the nation and sporting a 21-8 record.
For the complete list of award winners, go to Awards.