SMCC Men's Volleyball Set to Embark on Second Season

PHOENIX ---

The South Mountain Community College men's volleyball team begins its second official season of competition with an exhibition match against Arizona Christian University on Jan. 25 and the regular season opener against Ottawa University (AZ) on Jan. 27. Led by head coach Patrick Mooney, the Cougars are excited about the possibilities 2023 brings with a full roster loaded with newcomers and returners. 

SMCC features a roster of 12 student-athletes this spring, including three returners: Andy Sanchez, Victor Silva and John Engelbert. Among the newcomers, Mario Abril (Hermosillo, Mexico) is the lone sophomore and one of three Cougars from outside Arizona: Patrick Mayer (Draper, UT) and Michael Howell (Mission, TX).

"The returning players help significantly. Those guys know what is expected as a team and what my expectations are, and they have taken it upon themselves to educate the new players regarding how things are done," said Mooney. "Everybody has jumped on board with what is expected, and what we know we need to do. If one guy is off for the day practice-wise, there is enough leadership to where other guys can pick it up and get things done." 

Local products arrive primarily from the East Valley and high schools such as the American Leadership Academy, Desert Ridge, Queen Creek, Dobson, Westwood, and Seton Catholic. 

Mooney is eager to see how this team competes in its second year. 

"I am very excited. We have the three returning players, and having everyone committed before the start of the year is very exciting," Mooney said. "Now that we have guys and depth at each of our positions, it will be fun to see how we match up with the local four-year programs." 

The Cougars play 12 matches this spring, including the preseason opener on Jan. 25 against Arizona Christian. SMCC will also host Benedictine-Mesa (Feb.3), Ottawa University (AZ) (Feb. 13), Park-Gilbert (Feb. 22), Viterbo University (Mar. 12), and the GCU Club Team (Apr. 7). 

"I am looking forward to being able to compete with these schools. We can walk into another gym and know we have a good enough roster to give them a tough match. Even if we don't win, we will give them a tough match," Mooney added. "That is what we realized after we competed in a fall tournament at Ottawa University (AZ). There wasn't any team we got blown out by, so that was fun." 

Admission to the SMCC home matches is $3 for children and seniors and $5 for adults. Home matches will also feature a free live stream. 

In 2022, the Cougars played 10 matches against local four-year universities and won sets against Park-Gilbert twice and Ottawa University (AZ). 

The Cougars added men's volleyball as their 11th intercollegiate sport in the 2022 spring through a $10,000 grant provided by the NJCAA Foundation and First Point Volleyball Foundation. 

"Men's volleyball is exciting and incredibly powerful," Mooney concluded. "Guys can hit top-spin jump serves upwards of 70 miles per hour. They can hit a ball when attacking up to 75 mph, so it is a fast, quick, exciting game."