The Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference (KCAC) announced today the addition of men’s volleyball as a championship sport at the conference level starting in 2027. The addition brings the total number of championship sports sponsored by the conference to 29.

The KCAC joins seven other conferences in the NAIA that sponsor men’s volleyball.

The conference will have seven men’s volleyball programs in the 2027 season, including full member institutions Avila University, Kansas Wesleyan University, Oklahoma Wesleyan University, Ottawa University, and the University of Saint Mary, along with per sport member schools Central Christian College (Kan.) and Mission University (Mo.).

“We at the KCAC continue to be one of the leaders in small college athletics,” Brandon Buchanan, KCAC Commissioner, remarked. “We are blessed, fortunate, and excited to expand our reach, provide more opportunities for student athletes and jump into the ever expanding sport of Men’s Volleyball. We look forward to not only implementing this sport next year but watching how much this sport can grow and continue to develop within our conference and around the NAIA.”

Ottawa’s team has the longest tenure of all the KCAC teams for the 2027 season. The Braves have sponsored the sport since the 2016 season. KWU and Central Christian have sponsored the sport since 2021, Avila added the sport in 2026 and Saint Mary and Oklahoma Wesleyan will be first-year programs in 2027.

Kansas Wesleyan has sponsored men’s volleyball since the 2021 season. KWU initially competed in the Great Plains Athletic Conference, and most recently competed as part of the Heart of America Conference for the last two seasons. The HEART is one of the top NAIA men’s volleyball conferences in the country with several teams perennially ranked the NAIA Top 15.