BEVERLY, Mass. — The Conference of New England (CNE) announced on Tuesday afternoon in alignment and collaboration with the NEWMAC, Empire 8, United Volleyball Conference, and New England Volleyball Conference, that it will add Men's Volleyball as its 22^nd championship sport, effective with the 2026-27 academic year.

"In alignment with our strategic plan, our conference is always looking to be on the forefront of broadening our sport offerings to always provide quality student-athlete experiences," said CNE and NEVC Commissioner Patrick Colbert. "Attached to that commitment is working towards being a leader to better stabilize sports in our division and move them into multisport conference structures that allow programs and conferences to have a more stabilized path forward. We are thrilled to welcome Bard, SUNY Potsdam and VSU Johnson to the CNE as they have demonstrated a true commitment towards elevating their programs and they will certainly increase the competitiveness of our league moving forward."

Colbert added, "The unique part of this process is that we had the opportunity to work with three conferences who shared a vision of trying to create stability and structure for the involved institutions, and we are grateful to their respective leaderships as we were able to ensure a smooth realignment process that did not impede on any student-athlete access to Conference or NCAA Championships."

The CNE will absorb all remaining members of the New England Volleyball Conference (NEVC) which includes three CNE core members – Curry College, Endicott College, and Nichols College. Additionally, the nationally renowned program from Wentworth Institute of Technology will also transition its program into the CNE.

Wentworth will add similar success from the Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC), as the Leopards have reached five straight NCAA Tournaments – with seven total appearances. In their six previous NCAA appearances of 2025, the Black & Gold sported a 7-6 record and reached the quarterfinals each time they appeared in the tournament. In 2017 and 2022, Wentworth advanced to the national semifinals.

Curry just finished their inaugural men's volleyball season this spring and will play as a part of the NEVC for the 2026 spring season.

Also joining the CNE as associate members from the NEVC are Bard College, Vermont State University Johnson, and SUNY Potsdam.

Bard College made the NEVC Postseason this past season, sporting the league's Rookie of the Year in Ansel Waisler. The Raptors finished 12-17 on the season, and 2-4 in conference play. They fell to the SUNY Poly Wildcats in a tough-fought five-set loss in the NEVC First Round.

VSU Johnson finished the 2025 season with a 6-13 overall record, but was highlighted in the NEVC by strong play from Owen Marchessault. The rising junior was amongst the league's best in digs per set, while teammates Spencer Tergeolgou and Io Binder were strong on the serve. The latter pair were both top five in the NEVC in aces per set.

An NEVC Semifinal squad, SUNY Potsdam went 18-8 overall and 5-1 in the league in 2025. The Bears ran off 12 consecutive wins from March 7 through April 12 when they were stopped short in the NEVC Semifinals by the Endicott Gulls. Senior Matt Kilinski was a standout for the Bears, leading the team with 3.19 kills per set over 22 matches played.

While the NEVC will cease operations following the 2025-26 academic year, this collaboration allows all seven institutions to be eligible to earn access to CNE Championships and an automatic qualifier to the NCAA Division III Men's Volleyball Championship starting in the spring of 2027.

ABOUT THE CONFERENCE OF NEW ENGLAND

Originally founded in 1984 as the Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC), and reconstituted as the Conference of New England (CNE) in 2024, the CNE is an NCAA Division III athletic conference composed of 11 full member and five associate member institutions throughout the New England region. Its membership aims to provide student-athletes with a positive experience in their pursuit of excellence through high academic standards, quality competition and a meaningful student life. The Conference administers championships in 21 intercollegiate sports