Volleyball: University of Montpellier, 2025 French Champions
The AURA League (Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes), based in Grenoble, hosted the N1 and N2 finals of the French University Volleyball Championships on Wednesday, June 4, and Thursday, June 5.
Not only did the first team win the French N1 championship, but the second team, which had qualified for Nationale 2, also managed to finish in second place. The University of Montpellier thus secured two podium finishes in the 2025 season.
Both teams performed brilliantly in the academic and inter-academic qualifying rounds earlier this year. They are made up of students pursuing dual programs in “athletics and university studies in Sports Science, Law, Science, and the Sète Connected Campus.” These athletes train at the Pôle France de Volley (CNVB) and play for the MSHC Volley, Arago de Sète, Narbonne, Agde, and Ajaccio clubs.
After defeating the University of Strasbourg (2-0), the University of Paris Cité STAPS (2-1), and the University of Rennes 1 (2-0), the team went on to defeat INSA Lyon in the semifinals by a score of 2 sets to 0, and then the 2024 defending champion, Tours, in the final by a score of 2 sets to 1. Meanwhile, Team 2 lost in the final by a narrow margin of 2 sets to 1 against the University of Grenoble Alpes. The team had initially defeated, in the group stage and then in the semifinals without dropping a set, the University of Lille, the University of Lyon, the University of Paris Saclay Orsay, and then the University of the Côte d’Azur.
On the women’s side, the University of Montpellier—despite being without two key players who were selected for national training camp—managed to climb to fourth place in the Nationale 2 Championship.
The University of Montpellier has qualified for the European University Championships, to be held in July 2026 in Salerno, Italy. The 2026 edition of the “EUSA Games” will feature some 20 sports and 5,000 participants from 45 countries and 400 universities.
The roster for the men's first team:
MARE Haukéa (Pôle France), GIBOUIN Valentin (Pôle France), RESPAUT Guillaume (Pôle France), BARBIER Wayan (Arago de Sète), PERLADE LOUIS (Ajaccio), FROUARD Simon (Pôle France), LEROYER Tom (Pôle France), SPANO Nathan (MHSC Montpellier), BRANCIER VALENTIN (Pôle France), SECRETANT TIMÉO (Pôle France), SCHLIENGER TRISTAN (Arago de Sète), ASI FLORIAN, HALLART Dominique (Manager)
The roster for the men's second team:
DOLADILLE Mathis (MHSC Montpellier), DJOUADJ Nadir (Arago de Sète), ROUS Gael (Agde Volleyball), SIKSOU Kayan (MHSC Montpellier), ROSSI Enio (Arago de Sète), LABBE Alexandre (MHSC Montpellier), ROUX Léonard (Arago de Sète), DELOLME Matthias (MHSC Montpellier), BOUCHER Raphael LAURENT (Narbonne), Laurent Eliott (MHSC Montpellier), REVEL Thibault (Arago de Sète), LOPEZ Enzo (Arago de Sète), GUERCIO Nathan (Manager)
The women's team roster: Sports Science / Medicine / Pharmacy / Law / Polytech
BERNARD Malory (Sète VB), CASABIANCA Zoé (Lattes), FERESIN Clara (ASV Mauguio), HAMEL Louise, LAMBE Solenne (Volleyclub Gignac), LECLERCQ Alice (Lattes), MENG Ninon (Vienne), MIQUEL Agathe, POMMERET Héléna (Montpellier Croix d’Argent), REY Auriana (LAMVAC), SANTER Lilou (Béziers Volley), CADART Julie (Manager)
