By Emily Anastasio
As the final ball hit the floor of Blake Arena on Saturday night, crowning Springfield College the 2026 NCAA Division III men’s volleyball champions, the chants and cheers coming from the crowd were thunderous. Students and staff of the college, alumni that returned to Alden Street, and family members of the players were on their feet for all three sets, rooting for their hometown team. None of the cheers, though, were as deafening as the ones for Springfield’s head coach, Charlie Sullivan.
Sullivan is no stranger to walking along the sidewalks of Springfield College, having graduated from the school with his Bachelor of Science in General Education in 1991 and his Master of Physical Education in 1997. The very next year, he returned to Alden Street as a professor and head men’s volleyball coach. For 28 years now, Sullivan has been a light in the lives of so many people that he has crossed paths with, truly embodying the humanics mission of the college and earning the love and respect of members of the Pride across generations.
Fans from the general public who attended the championship match would be able to tell how important Sullivan is to the entire Pride community just by the ovation he received from the Springfield faithful. Chants of “Charlie–Charlie” bounced off of the walls of Blake Arena the moment Sullivan’s name was uttered over the loud speaker, the most enthusiastic chants of the night. The shouts for Springfield’s beloved coach were as loud, perhaps, as the ones when the Pride clinched the championship victory.
When asked about the amount of love and admiration he was shown several times throughout the match, Sullivan said, “I think the love is reciprocal. This is a school that started on serving others with humanics, values, and spirit, and for me, just to be able to contribute to that, I really appreciate that opportunity.”
During the awards presentation ceremony at the end of the night, fans of the Pride cheered again for Sullivan, repeating the booming chants of “Charlie” as he hoisted the national championship trophy above his head. As he joined the celebrations with his team, jumping and running around, his smile couldn’t have been any bigger.
Sullivan isn’t just a legend in the game of volleyball. He has been an integral part of the Springfield College community for almost three decades, always showing up and encouraging everybody on campus. Sullivan has given so much love and support to Alden Street, and the roaring cheers from the Pride fans tonight were their way of giving that love and support back to him.
Photo by Emma Bynes/The Student