St. Thomas Aquinas will enter the season as the overwhelming preseason favorite to win its third consecutive conference title.
The Spartans received all but one first-place vote to finish atop the ECC Preseason Poll that the conference recently released.
St. Thomas Aquinas finished last season undefeated in conference play and No. 8 in the Division II national coaches poll as it won back-to-back ECC championships.
Among the starters returning for the Spartans included middle attacker David Weiss who led the nation with a 1.29 kills per game average last season. Pin-hitter Kyran Versteegen was in the conference’s top five leaders with a 2.73 kills per game in 2025.
Versteegen and Roberts Wesleyan libero Moises Jimenez also were named the ECC Co-Preseason Player of the Year.
St. Thomas Aquinas garnered 14 points to edge out second-place Roberts Wesleyan by three points in the preseason poll.
Dominican was the only other team to receive a first-place vote and finished in third place.
The ECC season will begin in March and conclude with the four-team conference tournament. The ECC champion does not receive an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament, but every ECC team will be eligible for a possible at-large bid.
2026 ECC Preseason Poll
1. St. Thomas Aquinas – 14 (3) points
2. Roberts Wesleyan – 11 points
3. Dominican – 9 (1) points
4. American International – 6 points