Ryan McNeil, who joined the NJIT coaching staff in August 2004, is leading a resurgence of the university's two volleyball teams.

Originally hired to be head coach of the men's team and assistant coach of the women's team, he served as interim head coach of the women's team in 2005, with the interim tag removed for the 2006 season. He has been the men's head coach since 2005.

He has made his mark on both teams. On the men's side, taking over a team that last had a winning record in 2000, he guided his first squad to a .500 overall record in 2005. A year later, the Highlander men made the EIVA playoffs for the first time since 2000. And in 2007, NJIT posted a 19-10 record, compiling the program's best wins total since it wad 20-13 in 1995. Additionally, NJIT finished first in the EIVA Hay Division with a 9-1 mark and returned to the postseason playoffs.

On the women's side, he assisted on a 2004 team that made a double-digit jump in wins from the previous season.

In 2006, as the permanent head coach, despite playing its first season in Division I and with only two starters returning from the previous year, he oversaw an improved season win total of 10 an improvement over the team's nine wins in its last season at the Division II level in 2005.

Sporting a lineup of three freshmen and four sophomores in the top seven-player rotation, McNeil guided the young 2006 squad to a 7-7 mark over the last 14 matches

Quality volleyball, indeed, championship volleyball is nothing new to McNeil, who was a standout player in both Canada and the United States. Later, as an assistant coach at Lewis University in Illinois, he helped coach the men's team that won the 2003 national championship and the women's team that qualified for two NCAA Tournaments.

A native of Montego Bay, Jamaica, McNeil resided in Ontario, Canada, for 15 years. He was Most Valuable Player of two teams in Canada--Sheridan College in Brampton, Ontario and Ryerson University in Toronto.

Transferring south of the border to Lewis University in Romeoville, Illinois, McNeil played on the Flyers' 1998 national semifinalists.

He turned to coaching at Lewis, assisting with both the men's and women's teams. In his two years as an assistant with the men, Lewis qualified for the NCAA tournament twice, won two Midwest Intercollegiate Volleyball Conference crowns and captured the national title in 2003.

He coached with the Lewis women for four seasons and during his tenure, the Flyers made the NCAA Tournament twice and achieved national ranking in 2002.

McNeil resides in Newark.