EASTON, Pa. – Jeff “CJ” Werneke, who has spent the last three years at Binghamton University as associate head coach, has been named the next head coach of the Lafayette volleyball program. 

Werneke joins the Leopards following his three seasons with the Bearcats where he was part of a historic run. The Bearcats improved from 7-17 in 2021 to 17-7 in 2022. Binghamton went on to capture its first-ever America East regular season conference championship. The Bearcats notched 51 wins since his arrival (averaging 17 per season) and their 22-8 conference record was the best among its America East opposition in that timeframe.

At Binghamton, he helped mentor the program’s first-ever three-time AVCA All-American, first three-time America East player of the year and a conference-high 12 All-America East selections. At the end of the 2022 season, the America East recognized Binghamton with its coaching staff of the year award.

“We’re really excited for the next chapter in Lafayette volleyball,” said Lafayette Director of Athletics Sherryta Freeman. “CJ emerged from a deep applicant pool and brings a wealth of experience from his time as a head coach at Fairfield and Rutgers and more recently as an assistant at Binghamton where he was integral in helping turn around that program.”

“First and foremost, I would like to thank Director of Athletics Sherryta Freeman and Senior Assoc. A.D. Mike Chamberlain, as well as the rest of the search committee for this opportunity. I am extremely excited and grateful to be named the new heach coach of Lafayette Volleyball,” Werneke said. “I look forward to getting to know and to building lasting relationships with our current student-athletes while taking the next steps in building a successful program that will represent all that Lafayette embodies.”

Before his successes with the Bearcats, Werneke made a stop at Columbia in 2021-22 as an assistant coach/recruiting coordinator. He was instrumental in developing the team’s blocking and defensive systems, responsible for scouting, international outreach and tactical game plans in addition to his day-to-day tasks.

“His energy and passion for volleyball, particularly his impactful role in building strong program’s across multiple institutions, stood out in our search,” said Chamberlain, who led the search committee. “We are confident that his leadership and commitment to developing our student-athletes will elevate our program and inspire excellence both on and off the court.”

Werneke’s longest stint and most recent as a head coach came at the Big 10’s Rutgers in  2008-19. After a 2-22 start in the 2008 season, Werneke improved to double-digit wins in 2009, 2010 and 2011 before an 18-12 campaign in 2012. The 2019 season marked the Scarlet Knights’ first Big 10 wins (Northwestern and Iowa) since joining the conference in 2014. The institution’s RPI also jumped 85 spots in 2019 and Rutgers earned the AVCA Academic Award in nine of his 11 seasons in New Brunswick.

Before his decade-long tenure at Rutgers, Werneke spent six years (2002-08) as head coach at Fairfield, where he reached the 100-win plateau for his career in 2007. He led the Stags to four consecutive MAAC regular-season titles and in the 2006 and 2007 seasons he was named the MAAC Coach of the Year. The 2007 season was his best in Connecticut, as Fairfield finished 21-13 overall and 17-1 in MAAC play.

Werneke was an assistant coach at Rutgers from 1999-2002, prior to accepting the head coaching role at Fairfield. One of his main responsibilities over that time was to handle all aspects of recruiting, as well as game day and travel operations. Across those three years, Rutgers accumulated a 55-27 record.

A native of Dayton, Ohio, Werneke graduated from Samford University in 1996 with a bachelor of arts degree in Social Science. He also had assistant coaching stops at his alma mater, along with East Tennessee State and the University of Montevallo.

He currently resides in Washington, N.J. with his wife, Jennifer, daughters, Rylie and Parker, and son, Noah.

 

To keep up with the Lafayette volleyball team, follow its social media pages.

X/@LafColVBall | Instagram/@lafayette_vb | Facebook/GoLeopards

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The Bobcats went on the road and took down the Cougars in the District 3 Class 3A quarterfinals Thursday evening.

PALMYRA — It wasn’t clean and it certainly wasn’t pretty, but the Northeastern boys’ volleyball team is back where they’ve grown accustomed to being over the past two decades — the PIAA playoffs.

On the road against Palmyra on Thursday evening, the Bobcats dominated enough to land a berth in the District 3 Class 3A semifinals. Thanks to big nights from seniors Hugh Rogers and Koltrin Forry, the Northeastern boys weathered several dry runs to sweep the Cougars, 25-20, 25-21, 25-20, and earn a shot at top-seeded Cumberland Valley next Tuesday.

Rogers finished with 15 kills and Forry had 12 for the No. 13-seed Bobcats (16-3), who secured their first state tournament berth since 2021 with the victory over the tournament’s No. 5 seed. But head coach George Miller knows there’s still plenty to clean up.

“We had more than a few errors,” Bobcats coach George Miller said. “Errors that we just shouldn’t be doing at this time of the year, and consequently, we found ourselves in a tight one.”

There’s no question that the York-Adams League champs have the talent to compete against the best in the state. They battled and preserved in their five-set, first-round clash against No. 4 Warwick — ranked eighth in last week’s PVCA rankings to Northeastern’s ninth — on Tuesday, which earned them the right to face a scrappy Palmyra side.

Miller, however, thought his team had chances to make life much easier on itself Thursday. Rarely one to yell and carry on, Miller called his first timeout in Set 1 and gave his team a short, but emotional, rant.

“I felt like defensively we were giving them a lot of respect,” Miller said. “Probably too much, and they were kind of blowing us up. Now, (Palmyra) is a good team and they have good hitters, but good golly.”

Palmyra’s gym isn’t especially large by area, and certainly not in terms of ceiling height. There were more than a few times balls hit the ceiling, which featured a pair of AC ducts that run parallel to the sidelines.

“This is a tough place to play in,” Miller said. “But both teams have the same restrictions.”

While the Bobcats did enough to survive, Miller is under no illusion that a similar performance against Cumberland Valley in the semifinals will yield a positive result. The Eagles are ranked No. 1 in all of PIAA Class 3A, swept the Bobcats in a regular-season showdown and have dropped only a couple of sets all season — including weekend tournaments against the best competition in the state.

“I mean, we’re all quite happy to get back to states,” said Miller, who has been on the bench for all nine of Northeastern’s state titles (1992, 1993, 2012-18). “But the goal isn’t to just get to states … it’s to win the thing, and before we can get there, we still have a couple of big matches ahead of us, starting with Cumberland Valley.”

It’s certainly rare for a state-ranked team to be the 13th seed in its district bracket, but the District 3-3A field includes nine different teams who were ranked by statewide coaches this season. The Bobcats know they set themselves up for a lower seed by losing a contest against Dallastown in the regular season, but now they’re back at full strength and finding their groove.

“We were dealing with some injuries back then,” setter Jacob Zambito said of the Dallastown setback. “We had to mix up the lineups a little bit and find something that would work.”

Zambito, who dished out 39 assists Thursday, has no doubt that the current lineup is the best one for the squad. After dropping that contest against Cumberland Valley on April 28, the Bobcats have knocked off four state-ranked opponents — Warwick, York Suburban and Central York twice. The Panthers, who ousted Ceddar Crest 3-1 Thursday to make it two Y-A squads in the semifinals, have just those two losses to their ledger so far.

“Once we got into May, we started focusing on our lineup and our positions,” Zambito said. “And now I think we’re sailing.”

So does Zambito think an underdog Northeastern side could pull off the upset Tuesday? He wouldn’t bet against it.

“We actually took the first set that they lost all year against them up at the State College tournament,” Zambito said. “They may have lost more, but we were the first ones to take a set against them. Knowing that is something that I think is going to be a big motivator for us Tuesday.”

Box Score | UCI Presser | UH Presser
FULLERTON, Calif. — No. 1 seed UC Irvine (40-13) defeated the No. 4 seed Hawai’i (34-20) by a final score of 7-5 on day two of the 2025 Big West Baseball Championship, presented by Ontario International Airport, Thursday at Goodwin Field. The Anteaters advance to the semifinals of the winner’s bracket and will face No. 2 seed Cal Poly on Friday, May 23 at 3 p.m. PT. Hawai’i will face No. 3 seed Cal State Fullerton in an elimination game on Friday, May 23 at 7 p.m. PT. 

UCI took an early lead with three runs in the first inning with RBIs coming from Anthony Martinez, Jacob McCombs and Chase Call.

‘Eaters get on the board first! ??@UCIbsb‘s Anthony Martinez gets the RBI. #?????????????????????? x #NCAABaseball x @UCIAthletics pic.twitter.com/74RbyymEvq

— The Big West (@BigWestSports) May 22, 2025

Hawai’i responded with two runs in the next half inning as Kamana Nahaku and Draven Nushida each drove in a run. The Anteaters increased their lead to 6-2 in the bottom of the second inning after a Rainbow Warrior error and RBI from McCombs. 

Hawai’i closed the gap with a three-run homer from Ben Zeigler-Namoa in the seventh inning to cut the margin to one run.

 

A 3-Run ?????? for the ‘Bows!

Ben Zeigler-Namoa goes deep for @HawaiiBaseball to pull the ‘Bows within 1?. #?????????????????????? x #NCAABaseball x @HawaiiAthletics pic.twitter.com/Px9Y5tlrqk

— The Big West (@BigWestSports) May 23, 2025

UCI scored an insurance run in the eighth, driven in by Will Bermudez, and closer Max Martin shut the door to givethe Anteaters the victory. 

UCI’s pitching staff of Riley Kelly, Ricky Ojeda and Martin recorded nine strikeouts in the game, while its offense capitalized on Hawai’i’s error in the second inning and four hit batters.

Bermudez highlighted the game for the Anteaters by getting in base every plate appearance with a 2-for-2 effort, two walks drawn and two runs scored. Martinez made a notable impact with two RBIs.  McCombs also added to the scoreboard with two RBIs. On the pitching side, Kelly delivered a solid performance, recording five strikeouts over 4.1 innings, while allowing two earned runs. Ojeda earned the win, pitching 3.0 relief innings, to move to a perfect 13-0 pitching record on the season. Martin earned save number 14 on the season allowing only one hit in 1.2 innings of work. 

Zeigler-Namoa made a significant impact for the Rainbow Warriors with a home run and three RBIs. Jordan Donahue led the team with three hits. On the pitching side, Ethan Thomas excelled in relief, pitching 2.1 innings without allowing a hit or run and striking out three batters. 

 

Gallery: (5-22-2025) 2025 BSB Champs: No. 1 UCI vs No. 4 UH

Lindsay High senior Kaylene Magana was one of four seniors in Tulare County to be honored with the Tulare County Office of Education’s Pursuing Victory with Honor Scholarship.

Magana was honored on Tuesday during TCOE’s second annual PVWH Honors Banquet. At the dinner this year’s Provident-Salierno PVWH Scholarship winners and honored student-athletes who exhibit great character and sportsmanship on and off the field were announced. PVWH is a part of the CHARACTER COUNTS! Program.

The annual Provident-Salierno PVWH Scholarship program awards four Tulare County seniors a $500 scholarship for their academic achievements and their exemplary character on and off the field.

Magana, who participated in soccer and track at LHS, was one of the four awarded the scholarship. She will attend UCLA and will major in business and economics.

The other three athletes honored were Dinuba’s Ava Arias, Tulare Union’s Nathan Christiansen and Woodlake’s Alyssa Coelho.

In addition 22 students from 13 high schools were recognized as their schools’ PVWH Student-Athletes of the Year. Students were nominated for the award by coaches and athletic directors.

Among those honored were Monache’s Ariel Bermudez, who placed basketball, and Ace Guilliams, who participated in water polo and swimming.

WACO, Texas – Baylor volleyball has finalized its 2025 match schedule, featuring the Baylor Classic with Northwestern, Saint Mary’s (CA) and Rice.
 
The Bears will play a total of eight non-conference matches with just three of them at home.
 
With the full schedule announced, BU will face a total of eight teams who made the 2024 NCAA Tournament. The Bears’ 2025 schedule can be viewed and downloaded here.
 

To start the season in August, BU will play an exhibition match at Texas A&M at Reed Arena on Wednesday, August 20.
 
Baylor will travel to Baton Rouge, La., for three matches at LSU, facing South Alabama (8/29), SMU (8/30) and the Tigers (8/31).
 
To serve up the home slate, the Bears welcome Northwestern, Saint Mary’s (CA) and Rice for the 20^th iteration of the Baylor Classic. The match with the Wildcats will be Thursday, Sept. 4, with NU facing the Gaels on Friday before SMC plays against Baylor. Saturday’s lone match will be the Gaels against the Owls, and the tournament will end with BU facing Rice on Sunday, Sept. 7.
 
Baylor will travel to Gainesville, Fla., to play the Florida Gators on Sunday, Sept. 14, before facing UCF to start Big 12 play on Tuesday, Sept. 16.
 
The final match of non-conference will be former Big 12 foe Texas: BU traveling down to Austin on Friday, Sept. 19 for that match.
 
Baylor will play a total of 12 home matches in the 2025 season, with 14 on the road.
 
Fans interested in purchasing tickets for the upcoming Baylor Volleyball season can visit BaylorBears.com/Tickets. Tickets will officially go on sale in early June. All seats are general admission for volleyball in the Ferrell Center.
 
Directly support Baylor Volleyball by contributing to the Excellence Fund or joining the One Way Club!
 
To stay up to date all year long on all things Baylor volleyball, follow the team on Facebook, TikTok, X (Twitter) and Instagram: @BaylorVBall.
 
 

 – BaylorBears.com –

South Carolina Beach Volleyball just leveled up big time with a new head coach. The Gamecocks have officially hired José Loiola, a former World Champion and Olympian, as the next coach of the volleyball program. Loiola is highly regarded as one of the most talented minds in the sport, and he is bringing a wealth of knowledge and experience to Columbia.

Loiola joins the Gamecocks after a standout stint as an assistant at UCLA, where he helped to guide the Bruins to a 30-6 season, and the No. 1 seed in the 2024 NCAA Tournament. He arrives with an extensive resume from coaching with Team USA’s Development Program to the U21 National Team.

Before dominating at the coaching level, Loiola dominated in the sand himself. The Brazilian native won the 1999 Beach Volleyball World Championship with Emanuel Rego and earned Olympic honors by competing in the 2000 Sydney Games. Loiola’s second-place finish in the 2001 World Championships with Ricardo Santos cemented his status as one of the best to ever do it.

South Carolina Athletic Director Jeremiah Donati referred to Loiola’s hiring as a game-changer:

“José’s background and knowledge in beach volleyball is unmatched. His passion will create a culture of excellence here in Columbia.”

And Loiola himself said, “Everything I’ve done in my life has led me here. With my passion and commitment to developing both the player and the person, we will make this a place where potential becomes legacy.”

The beach is coming to Columbia, and it is bringing a champion with it.