NEWARK, NJ–NJIT was selected to finish second in the 2026 EIVA Preseason Coaches Poll which was released on Monday by the league office with a list of Players to Watch which included senior Andrew Fedmasu and junior Diego Lopez.

The Highlanders concluded the 2025 season 14-13 overall, 8-4 in the EIVA Conference, both records above .500.  The 14 wins overall and the eight wins in the conference are the most wins since the 2022 season.  The second place finish in the regular season in 2025 is the highest finish for the Highlanders in Danny Goncalves 12-year career at the helm of the Highlanders.

Penn State received all seven first-place votes to finish atop the preseason poll, coming in ahead of NJIT (34 points) and George Mason (32) in second and third. Rounding out the poll were Princeton (26), Charleston (22), Harvard (22), and Sacred Heart (11).

The conference tournament will be held April 22-25 at the home of the regular-season champion.

NJIT will open the 2026 season at Hawaii on January 2 (7pm (HT)/12pm(ET) and January 4 (5pm (HT)/10pm(ET).

EIVA Players to Watch in 2026 as selected by coaches:
Charleston: Lucas Torres (Sr., PIN), Kai Cousins (So., OH)
George Mason: Liam French (R-Sr., OH), Alex Lillie (So., MB)
Harvard: Zach Berty (Sr., OH), Brian Thomas (Sr., OH)
NJIT: Diego Lopez (Jr., L), Andrew Fedmasu (Sr., MB)
Penn State: Owen Rose (R-Sr., MB), Ryan Merk (R-Sr., L)
Princeton: Ryan Vena (Sr., MB), Mason Rice (So., OH)
Sacred Heart: Aleksa Mandic (Jr., OH), Harryzen Soares (So., L)

2026 EIVA Preseason Coaches' Poll