ROLLA, Mo. – After a successful inaugural season on the court, Missouri S&T's men's volleyball team will embark on its second season of play Sunday when it hosts Dominican (Ill.) in a 1 p.m. match at Gibson Arena.

The Miners finished 12-9 in year one and will be under the direction of Ryan Thompson this spring, as he was elevated from the assistant coach position to the head coaching role in the off-season.  He will have an experienced team to work with as 12 players on the 2024 roster saw action during the course of last year.

Heading that group is sophomore Nate Meyer (Arlington Heights, Ill./Hersey), who was selected as a freshman All-America last season by Off The Block after a year when he finished among the top 18 nationally in four categories.  Meyer recorded a team-leading 278 kills last season, as well as 337 points and 43 service aces; his average of 0.6 aces per set ranked fifth in the nation, while he was seventh with 4.75 points per set.

The Miners also got strong contributions a year ago from returners Aaron Sallade (Palatine, Ill./William Fremd), who had 165 kills and Josh Duett (Grain Valley, Mo./Grain Valley), who recorded 87 kills during the year.  S&T also got good numbers in its inaugural season from middle blockers Caleb Rohlwing (Barrington, Ill./Barrington) and Grogran Kraus, as Kraus finished with 79 kills and a team-leading 47 blocks and Rohlwing had 60 kills and 44 blocks during the year.

Zachary Carff (O'Fallon, Mo./St. Dominic) was second on the team to Meyer in digs with 76 and added 61 kills while returner Jordan Orr (Eureka, Mo./Eureka) had 235 assists, the most among the returning players.

In addition, the Miners return five more players who saw the floor last season in Owen Price (Bay Shore, New York/Bay Shore) – who had 70 digs last year – Adam Kokal (St. Louis, MO/Parkway Central), Jacob Williams (Fenton, Mo./Fox), Ryan Sword (Fairfax, Va./W.T. Woodson) and Jonathan Piggot.  In addition, Jared Byas (Frankfort, IL/Lincoln-Way East), who was with the team last season but did not play during the spring, is also back in the mix this year.,

Among the newcomers are middle blockers Tyler Johnwick (Lombard, IL/Glenbard East) and Adam Koniecko (Bartlett, IL/Bartlett), outside hitter Camden Seaver (Palatine, IL/William Friend), opposite side hitter Henry Small (St. Louis, MO/Priory), setters Eric Giezycki and Grant Edmonds (Shawnee, KS/Edison) and liberos Jackson Daugherty (Wichita, KS/Bishop Carroll) and Bartosz Chmielewski (Aurora, IL/Metea Valley).

ABOUT DOMINICAN: The Stars finished last season with a 13-12 record and return 14 players from that roster for the 2024 season.  They reached the championship game of the Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference last season before losing to Benedictine (Ill.) in four sets, but won eight of their final 10 matches of the season to end up above the .500 mark.

Dominican returns its top three offensive players, led by Casey Goss who led the Stars with 251 kills a season ago. Aaron Marrs finished the year with 203 kills and Tanner Dahman had 198 and shared the team lead with Goss with 40 service aces,  Goss also had the most blocks among the returners with 58, while Owen Morrow had team highs with 773 assists and 148 digs.