The CSUN men’s volleyball team has been off to its best start since 2018 and is currently the No. 16 team in the nation. Despite dropping their matches to No. 6 USC and No. 3 UCLA, the team has shown immense improvement from the previous two seasons under third-year head coach Theo Edwards.
CSUN jumped out to a scorching hot start to the year. The Matadors were 5-0 and had only dropped two sets to their competition before their back-to-back losses to the Trojans and Bruins.
The Matadors have struggled against USC and UCLA in recent seasons. Since 2023, the team has been 1-6 against the two local powerhouses. Since Edwards took over the program, a common theme has been their consistent domination of non-ranked opponents. CSUN has a 17-7 record in such matchups in the last two seasons.
Over the past two years, another staple of the program has been improvements in their conference record. In 2023, Edwards’ inaugural season as head coach, CSUN went 1-9 against their conference opponents, with their lone win coming against UC San Diego. The following season, they improved to 3-7 in conference play and even pulled off an upset win against UCSD in the first round of the Big West Championship.
CSUN setter Donovan Constable noted the difference between this year’s team and previous teams he’s played on at CSUN, which has been the chemistry between the teams.
“I think the past few years, we’ve had one or two big guys that would kind of lead the way for us, but I think everyone now has their own part. It’s a little better split instead of 50 percent on one guy,” Constable said. “I don’t know. We all just get along much better. And there’s a lot of cultures on the team, a lot of guys from around the world, so I think everyone’s bringing their own piece to it.”
This season, CSUN’s balance is evident in the statistics. On offense, six players are averaging more than two points per set, compared to only four players achieving similar stats last season.
The Matadors have massively improved on the defensive end so far this season. Last season, CSUN only had one player averaging over 1.2 digs per set. This year, the team has five players averaging those same stats.
So, what does this mean for CSUN’s volleyball program moving forward?
With Edwards at the program’s helm, the Matadors have established their culture and foundation and built a program predicated on consistent improvement and hard work. While it is still early in the season, the team has shown that they can compete with the rest of the Big West and be viable to win a few playoff rounds.
Although it might be the final season of eligibility for key seniors like Constable and Lorenzo Bertozzi, the Matadors have a young core to continue building this program into a potential contender for the next few years. Building blocks like Jalen Phillips, Stilian Delibosov and Joao Avila will be essential to the future success of CSUN men’s volleyball.