1-General | 2/3/2026 4:03:00 PM
MIAMI SHORES, Fla. – The Barry University Athletics Department just added a new sport to the Buccaneer family, introducing men's beach volleyball as the 24th varsity sport offered by the institution. The Buccaneers now offer four varsity-level volleyball opportunities at the collegiate level, becoming just the sixth school in the country to do so.
Associate Vice President and Director of Intercollegiate Athletics, Dr. Scott Smith said:
"Men's college beach volleyball is a rapidly growing sport and is gaining tremendous traction across the high school and collegiate levels. Already sponsoring men's and women's indoor volleyball and women's beach volleyball, adding men's beach volleyball completes our overall volleyball program. Sponsoring all four programs, I look forward to working with Coach [Leonid] Yelin and being a pioneer in collegiate volleyball."
Yelin, who coached the women's indoor team from 1991-95, including the 1995 national championship club, returned to The Shores in 2022. He was elevated to director of volleyball in 2024 and has the overall direction of all four programs.
The uniqueness continues as Barry becomes just the fourth NCAA Division II department to have all four volleyball programs. They are the first NCAA school in the state of Florida to sponsor all four, the second overall, joining NAIA Webber International.
The Buccaneers are now the 10th school to offer men's beach volleyball as a sport, the seventh to do so on a varsity level. They join Liberty, Erskine, Wingate, Tusculum, Stevenson, Arizona Christian, Hope International, Park Gilbert, and Webber International. ACU, Park, and Liberty all offer the sport at a club level.
Men's beach volleyball plays their competitions during the fall semester and are set to start competing in fall of 2027. The American Coaches Volleyball Association (AVCA) hosts a national tournament, inviting the top four programs between all the schools to play at a neutral site where they play alongside the women's tournament.
Stay tuned for more information on how to join the team.
