St. Thomas Captures WinWon Men's Volleyball Championship
KINGSPORT, Tenn. - St. Thomas completed its perfect season against conference opponents as it won the 2025 WinWon Appalachian Athletic Conference (AAC) Men's Volleyball Tournament championship on Saturday, defeating third-seeded Webber International 3-1.
The three-day tournament was held at the Tribe Athletic Complex in Kingsport, Tenn.
St. Thomas had to battle to win the first set as the teams went back and forth for nearly 40 minutes. Eventually, St. Thomas pulled out the 32-30 set win. The Bobcats used that momentum to take the second set 25-11, but the Warriors fought back to win the third frame 25-23 to cut the Bobcats' lead to 2-1.
In the fourth set, St. Thomas maintained control and locked up the set 25-19 to win the match and championship 3-1.
St. Thomas went 16-0 against AAC opponents this season.
Matheus Collares registered 63 assists in the title match, earning him Tournament MVP honors. Joining him on the All-Tournament Team are Kaelen Ingram and Gabriel Negrao of St. Thomas; Joshua Corr and Kevin Reiz of Webber; Gabriel Gutierrez of Reinhardt; and Kyle Pietrzak of Bluefield.
Ingram had 26 kills in the title match, while Negrao delivered 20. For Webber, Corr set the pace with 17 kills, and Reiz tallied seven kills, and three blocks.
With the win, St. Thomas receives an automatic berth to the NAIA National Championship Tournament, which is set for April 29-May 3 in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.
TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE
Thursday, April 17
Game 1 - No. 1 St. Thomas (21-1) def. No. 8 Truett McConnell (10-12), 3-0 (box)
Game 2 - No. 2 Reinhardt (20-5) def. No. 7 Warner (5-15), 3-0 (box)
Game 3 - No. 3 Webber International (14-4) def. No. 6 Life (12-18), 3-1 (box)
Game 4 - No. 4 Bluefield (14-10) def. No. 5 Talladega (8-8), 3-2 (box)
Friday, April 18
Game 5 - No. 1 St. Thomas (22-1) def. No. 4 Bluefield (14-11), 3-0 (box)
Game 6 - No. 3 Webber International (15-4) def. No. 2 Reinhardt (20-6), 3-1 (box)
Saturday, April 19
Game 7 - Championship Game - No. 1 St. Thomas (23-1) def. No. 3 Webber International (15-4), 3-1 (box)
