National Collegiate Championship History
Since The Big West began sponsoring the sport of men’s volleyball in 2018, the league is:
• 5-time national champion with Long Beach State winning three (2018, ’19, ’25) times and Hawai’i taking two (2021, ’22)
• A combined 21-6 (.778) overall with four different representatives in the field (LBSU, UH, UCI, UCSB)
All-time, The Big West is:
• 10-time national champion with Long Beach State winning four (1991, ’18, ’19, ’25), UC Irvine claiming four (2007, ’09, ’12, ’13) and Hawai’i taking two (2021, ’22)
• A combined 57-40 (.540) with five representatives in the field making a collective 42 appearances since 1970
What 2 Watch 4 - History Made
For the first time in Big West history, the league is sending three teams to the 2026 National Collegiate Men’s Volleyball Championship. The expanded 12-team bracket features two regional hosts from the league as The Big West comprises a quarter of the selections.
The top four teams are seeded at four regional sites of competition with both Big West Championship finalists serving as hosts of the May 1 regional round and the May 2 regional finals. Each advancing regional site victor will move on to the Championship final site to compete on May 9 and 11 at Pauley Pavilion in Los Angeles.
No. 3 seed and Big West champion Long Beach State (24-4, 8-2 BW) and is making a 16th all-time appearance in the postseason field and a sixth since Big West sports sponsorship. The defending national champion is looking for a fourth title since 2018, hoping to hoist another set of back-to-back trophies.
LBSU outlasted Hawai’i in an epic five-setter for the title last night with freshman and Championship Most Valuable Player Wojciech Gajek powering down 27 kills on .489 hitting with six blocks, five digs and three aces en route to the trophy.
The Beach draw regional hosting duties with at-large team Loyola Chicago (20-8, 12-4 MIVA) taking on winners of the NEC, Saint Francis (18-11, 10-2) on Friday at 7 p.m. from LBS Financial Credit Union Pyramid. Then, the Beach are waiting in the wings for Saturday’s 6 o’clock first serve as LBSU begins their title defense. Dating back to 2010, Long Beach State is a combined 14-0 against their prospective regional finals opponents.
No. 2 seed Hawai’i (27-5, 9-1 BW) earned an at-large selection and sees their name in the national collegiate brackets for the 10th time, and sixth in the last in the last seven contested championships. The Big West regular-season victors saw five players on the All-Big West teams this season – tops in the league – with a potent offense directed by AVCA Player of the Year semifinalist in setter Tread Rosenthal dishing the ball to weapons Kristian Titriyski, Louis Sakanoko and Adrien Roure with Quintin Greenidge holding down the back line.
The Rainbow Warriors await the winner of the first regional contest between at-large selection Southern California (19-7, 9-5 MPSF) and Belmont Abbey (20-5, 13-1), the automatic qualifier out of Conference Carolinas. UH boasts a 24-13 all-time record over USC with the last five meetings coming on O’ahu. The Trojans took the last meeting 3-1 in 2025. The ’Bows also faced off with Belmont Abbey a season ago, a sweeping victory in UH’s favor in just their second ever matchup. UH plays their regional finals match on Saturday at 7 p.m. PT/4 p.m. HT.
Hawai’i and Long Beach State are on the same side of the 12-team bracket, setting up the potential for a national semifinal rematch between the Beach and the ’Bows on May 9.
Finally, UC Irvine (18-8, 5-5 BW) earned entry into the field for a 9th time in program history and the third in The Big West era. The Anteaters open regional play against EIVA champion Penn State (22-7, 12-0 EIVA) on Friday at 6 o’clock.
UCI started the 2026 campaign on a tear, winning 11 consecutive to set a program record, highlighted by road wins at then No. T-3 and postseason selection Pepperdine and a pair a five-set victories at then-No. 8 BYU.
The Anteaters placed two on the All-Big West team with seven-time Freshman of the Week and Big West Freshman of the Year Andrej Jokanovic averaging team bests of 3.45 kills and 4.16 points per set and 45 service aces on the season thus far leading the way. The Nittany Lions are led by conference Player of the Year Sean Harvey, who enters the national postseason averaging 3.59 kills and 4.27 points per set on .332 hitting.
The last meeting between the two sides came in the 2024 national collegiate bracket when fourth-seeded UCI swept through Penn State in the opening round of the Championship hosted by Long Beach State.
The victor between the Anteaters and Nittany Lions advances to take on top-seeded UCLA (29-1, 13-1 MPSF) in the regional final, who are unbeaten at home. The lone blemish on their record came at then-No. 6 Pepperdine on April 6.
The powerhouse Big West is looking to continue the success well into the month of May when the final four squads converge on the campus of UCLA May 9-11.
Taking home the first four national championships when The Big West began sponsoring men’s volleyball in 2018 and a fifth in 2025, the league is looking to continue its strength on the national stage in 2026. With the Beach and the ’Bows claiming back-to-back national collegiate titles around the pandemic-shortened 2024 season and LBSU reigning supreme in the latest edition, The Big West has enjoyed at least one national finalist in each of the last seven seasons.
All three of this week’s guaranteed must-watch Big West men’s volleyball matches including the potential fourth are set to air on ESPN+. Check listings for additional match information.
About the Beach
Trends:
Won their last 10 games and their third Big West Championship crown (2018, ’24, ’26) in their fifth Championship finale; their first title also came against UH in the inaugural season of Big West play in 2018. Freshman Wojciech Gajek earned Most Valuable Player after averaging 4.63 kills and 5.88 points per set. In the final against the ‘Bows, Gajek hit .489 (27-5-45) with six blocks and three aces.
Notables:
Only league losses came at the hands of Hawai’i in the first week of the Big West slate back on March 20-21. Since then, LBSU has won their last 10 contests. Only other two losses on the 2026 docket came in rematches of the 2025 national championship against No. 1 UCLA.
Hungry to Defend
Long Beach State is hungry to defend their 2025 national collegiate championship title to put another set of back-to-back trophies in the case. The Beach also took home consecutive hardware in 2018 and ’19 under the direction of storied head coach Alan Knipe, who handed the reigns to protege and former player Nick MacRae before the 2026 campaign.
About the 'Bows
Trends:
Won eight of their last 10 and are played in a sixth Big West Championship game; won the Big West postseason crown on three occasions, including last season (2019, ’23, ’25).
Notables:
UH’s lone loss in conference play came at UC San Diego on the penultimate weekend of the regular season without the help of three key players for the bulk of the match, including AVCA National Player of the Year semifinalist setter Tread Rosenthal (10.66 assists per set; 11 Big West Setter of the Week awards in 2026), starting middle Justin Todd (1.07 blocks per set, .426 hitting) and fellow middle Trevell Jordan (1.38 kills per set, 0.84 blocks per set).
A Winning Tradition
Since the start of the 2015 season, UH is the nation’s winningest team with 272 wins followed by Long Beach State (261). UH has the second-most NCAA Tournament appearances since 2015 with seven trips trailing Long Beach State (8).
About the 'Eaters
Trends:
5-5 in their last 10 games after closing the season with three of four against Long Beach State (regular season and Big West semifinals) and a home series against Hawai’i.
Battle Tested
Along with the fierce Big West slate, UCI’s schedule featured top competition throughout the non-conference schedule, including nine matches against ranked foes. Notable wins came at then No. 3 Pepperdine, in a pair of five-setters at then-No. 8 BYU, in two victorious efforts against then-No. 16 Stanford and in a season split against then-No. 4 USC, earning the 3-1 road win in mid-February. The Anteaters’ schedule is rated eighth-toughest in the country, behind three fellow Big West Schools (UH, UCSB, LBSU), Ohio State, Stanford, Pepperdine and UCLA with all but one of those teams dotting the 2026 docket.
Poll Position
The Big West sees four teams in the top 10 for the seventh straight week headlined by No. 2 Long Beach State and No. 3 Hawai’i, with UC Irvine at sixth and UC Santa Barbara landing in 10th in the latest AVCA National Collegiate Men’s Volleyball Poll. UC San Diego is right behind in 11th in the listings with CSUN at No. 18 for the sixth consecutive poll. Including the preseason poll, all 17 iterations of the 2026 poll have seen all six Big West squads in the Top 20 showcasing the overall strength of the conference.
AVCA Player of the Year Hopefuls
On April 8, the AVCA publicized the list of eight semifinalists for 2026 National Collegiate Player of the Year with two representatives from The Big West in Hawai’i junior setter Tread Rosenthal and Long Beach State senior Skyler Varga. The eight will be pared down to four prior to the Championship with the winner named in Los Angeles on May 8.
Back in February, five of the 15 on the first-ever watch list came from The Big West, with lone freshman Andrej Jokanovic of UC Irvine, CSUN’s Jalen Phillips and Adrien Roure of Hawai’i also earning distinction along with Rosenthal and Varga.
The Big West has flexed its muscles since sport sponsorship in 2018 with seven of the last eight Players of the Year coming from the conference, including the last five. Historically, Big West schools have claimed 14 awards since 1991. Recent winners include Rado Parapunov (2021 - Hawai’i), Alex Nikolov (2022 - Long Beach State), Jakob Thelle (2023 - Hawai’i), Hilir Henno (2024 - UC Irvine) and Moni Nikolov (2025 - Long Beach State).
The AVCA is scheduled to announce its slate of All-Americans and 2026 Newcomer of the Year next Wednesday, May 6 with Coach and Assistant Coach of the Year honors bestowed the following day. Then, Player of the Year will be revealed on Friday, May 8, on the eve of the semifinals in Los Angeles.
Coaches’ Corner
The Big West coaching lineup is decorated by national champions as players and coaches, national coaches of the year, one newcomer and 855 career wins heading into the 2026 campaign. Long Beach State alumni and long-time assistant Nick MacRae took the reigns from Hall of Fame coach Alan Knipe in December ahead of the 2026 campaign. Uniquely, five of the league’s six head coaches have only been the leader of their current team, with UCSB's Rick McLaughlin the only coach to have two stops on the resume. |
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