DG’s Janowiak, COD, hoping to bolster junior college volleyball

BY JEFF VORVA

Big things are happening in the world of junior college men’s volleyball and the College of DuPage.

And Downers Grove’s Adam Janowiak is going to be a big part of it.

Let’s face it, college men’s volleyball is low on the food chain when it comes to being recognized, and many people don’t even know it exists on the junior college level. There are only approximately 20 teams in the country that offer it, most on the East Coast.

But COD coach Tolis Koskinaris thinks that will change.

“It’s going to be a matter of time when men’s volleyball gets added in a lot of these programs,” he said. “I see it happening in the next three or four years.”

Meanwhile, the Chapparals play matches against four-year college junior varsity teams such as Aurora University, Governors State and Trinity Christian College. Junior college competition usually requires trips to New York.

Last year, the Chaps won the national tournament, but this year, the National Junior College Athletic Association is changing the sport’s status from an emerging sport to a sanctioned sport.

“I feel like for our program it was a huge deal,” Janowiak said of winning the national title. “It was a great step toward success for the program.”

There is another great step that the sophomore outside hitter from Downers Grove North can look forward to. It was recently announced that COD will host the inaugural NJCAA-sanctioned national championships April 23-25 in Glen Ellyn.

“The first reason I fell in love with volleyball is because it’s not a slow-paced game.”

— Adam Janowiak

Janowiak is eyeing a second national title – this time in his own backyard. He feels the team has the chops to get there, as a 7-0 start to the season has shown.

“We have some new guys, and they realize we have a shot at the championship again,” he said. “They are putting effort in and realize that we can win the trophy again.”

Janowiak was a multi-sport athlete who got hooked on volleyball in high school and got serious about it in his junior year.

The Chaps hope to win the national tournament again this year.

“The first reason I fell in love with volleyball is because it’s not a slow-paced game,” he said. “The rallies might not last all that long, but it is always a constant movement. It’s really hard to get bored. I played baseball growing up, and I eventually just quit it because it was just so slow-paced. I would be sitting at third base and not getting the ball at all. I wasn’t moving that much at all.

“Volleyball is such a fast-paced game, and I was naturally just good at it.”

He said he chose COD to be close to home and is on the lookout for a four-year college after he completes his final year at the school.

Last year, he racked up 186 kills, 123 digs, 29 blocks, and 22 aces.

“He was heavily recruited out of high school, and he decided to stay local,” Koskinaris said of Janowiak. “We appreciated that very much. He’s been a great asset to our program.

“We have him playing in a different position than he played as a prep. He was a middle hitter, and now he is playing outside. He’s been doing great.”

By the way, Koskinaris coaches the women’s volleyball team in the fall and it has enjoyed national success, winning the NJCAA Division III title in 2023 and taking fifth in 2023, third in 2024 and fourth in 2025.

The Wheaton and Naperville native seems to have the magic touch of building programs and maintaining them, even with the hurdles of quick roster turnovers.

“He’s a great role model,” Janowiak said of Koskinaris. “He’s very…sometimes he seems angry. But for the players who understand him, he’s just phenomenal.”