2026 Cal State Northridge Matadors men's volleyball team
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- Theo Edwards (4th season)
| 2026 Cal State Northridge Matadors men's volleyball | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Conference | Big West Conference |
| Ranking | |
| Coaches | No. 18 |
| Record | 12-12 (0-8 Big West) |
| Head coach |
|
| Assistant coaches |
|
| Home arena | The Matadome |
The 2026 Cal State Northridge Matadors men's volleyball team is the varsity intercollegiate volleyball program of the California State University, Northridge (CSUN). The Matadors, led by Coach Theo Edwards, play their home games in the Matadome located on the campus in Northridge, California. Cal State Northridge has been a member of the Big West Conference since 2001.[1] CSUN began the season ranked No. 11 in the AVCA preseason coaches poll.[2] The 2026 season marks the first year in which the NCAA men's volleyball tournament will feature twelve teams, expanded to reflect the sport's continued growth.[3]
| Conf. | Overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team | W | L | PCT | W | L | PCT | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 2 Hawaii | 9 | – | 1 | .900 | 26 | – | 4 | .867 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 3 Long Beach State | 8 | – | 2 | .800 | 22 | – | 4 | .846 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 5 UC Irvine | 5 | – | 5 | .500 | 18 | – | 7 | .720 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 9 UC Santa Barbara | 5 | – | 5 | .500 | 14 | – | 12 | .538 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 11 UC San Diego | 3 | – | 7 | .300 | 13 | – | 13 | .500 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 18 Cal State Northridge | 0 | – | 10 | .000 | 12 | – | 15 | .444 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| † – Conference champion ‡ – Big West tournament champion y – Invited to the NCAA tournament As of April 23, 2026 Rankings from AVCA | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Matadors finished the 2025 season 18-11, going 3-7 in Big West play and finished sixth in the conference. In the 2025 Big West Tournament, the Matadors ended their season with a five set loss to the UC Irvine Anteaters.[4]
Preseason
Source:[5]
Both the preseason All-Big West team and the Big West Coaches' Poll were released on December 29, 2025. Cal State Northridge was picked to finish tied for fourth along with UC San Diego and UC Santa Barbara, and had one player make the preseason team.
Big West Coaches' Poll
| Pos. | Team | Points |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Long Beach State | 24 (4) |
| 2 | Hawai'i | 22 (2) |
| 3 | UC Irvine | 17 |
| T-4 | CSUN | 9 |
| UC San Diego | ||
| UC Santa Barbara |
| Preseason All-Big West Team | |||
| Player | No. | Position | Class |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jallin Philips | 18 | Opposite | Redshirt Junior |
Roster
Source:[6]
| No. | Name | Position | Height | Year | Hometown |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Stilian Delibosov | MB | 6'6" | So. | Rozlog, Bulgaria |
| 2 | Jordan Lucas | OH | 6'3" | R-Jr. | Haciendo Height, Calif. |
| 3 | Benjamin Cohen | L | 5'9" | R-So. | Rosevile, Calif. |
| 4 | Malcon King | MB | 6'5" | R-Jr. | Long Beach, Calif. |
| 5 | Joao Avila | OH | 6'1" | So. | Rio de Janeiro, Brazil |
| 6 | Hank Kaufman | OH | 6'5" | R-So. | Santa Clarita, Calif. |
| 7 | Logan Spencer | S | 6'0" | R-Fr. | Colorado Springs, Colo. |
| 8 | Chris Karnezis | L | 6'1" | R-Jr. | Park Ridge, Ill. |
| 9 | Shan Nhem | MB | 6'4" | Sr. | Union City, Calif. |
| 10 | Owen Douphner | S | 6'7" | R-So. | Stevenson Ranch, Calif. |
| 11 | Kingston Jerome | S | 6'6" | Fr. | Los Vegas, Nev. |
| 12 | Boaz Serson | OH | 6'4" | So. | Kfar Saba, Israel |
| 13 | Santiago Mendoza | OH | 6'4" | R-Jr. | Asuncian, Paraguay |
| 14 | Nial Finnegan | MB | 6'6" | R-Jr. | San Mateo, Calif. |
| 15 | Nir Eitan | MB | 6'6" | Jr. | Tel-Mond, Israel |
| 17 | Joel Eanes | OPP | 6'9" | Fr. | Virginia Beach, Va. |
| 18 | Jalen Philips | OPP | 6'5" | R-Jr. | Anaheim, Calif. |
| 20 | Joao Favarim | MB | 6'7" | So. | Curitiba, Brazil |
| 21 | Noah Douphner | OH | 6'7" | Fr. | Stevenson Ranch, Calif. |
| 22 | Braden Pool-Harris | L | 5'11" | So. | Long Beach, Calif. |
| 23 | Grayson Albers | OH | 6'7" | OH | Sacremento, Calif. |
Coaches
| Position | Name | Season |
|---|---|---|
| Head Coach | Theo Edwards | 4th |
| Assistant coach 1 | Ryan Mason | 4th |
| Assistant coach 2 | Michael Arone | 22nd |
| Assistant coach 3 | Bryan Bran | 2nd |
Schedule
Source:[7]
| Date Time |
TV Radio |
Opponents | Rank | Stadiums | Scores | Sets | Attendance | Overall | Big West |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UCSB ASICS Invitational | |||||||||
| Jan. 8
7:00 pm |
ESPN+ | Maryville | No. 11 | Rob Gym
Santa Barbara, CA |
W, 3-1 | 25-23
25-20 23-25 25-21 |
80 | 1-0 | — |
| Jan. 9
2:00 pm |
ESPN+ | Harvard | No. 11 | Rob Gym
Santa Barbara, CA |
W, 3-1 | 25-16
25-19 26-28 25-18 |
0 | 2-0 | — |
| Jan 10
4:30 pm |
ESPN+ | Kentucky State | No. 11 | Rob Gym
Santa Barbara, CA |
W, 3-0 | 25-10
25-10 25-21 |
40 | 3-0 | — |
| Under Armor Challenge | |||||||||
| Jan 16
5:00 pm |
ESPN+ | @ Lindenwood | No. 12 | Robert Hyland Arena
St. Charles, MO |
L, 1-3 | 25-23
28-30 26-28 20-25 |
261 | 3-1 | — |
| Jan. 17
2:00 pm |
Not Televised | Purdue For Wayne | No. 12 | Robert Hyland Arena
St. Charles, MO |
W, 3-1 | 35-33
25-17 24-26 25-16 |
71 | 4-1 | — |
| Jan. 21
6:00 pm |
ESPN+ | Long Island | No. 16 | The Matadome
Northridge, CA |
W, 3-0 | 25-22
25-17 25-20 |
352 | 5-1 | — |
| Jan 26
6:00 pm |
ESPN+ | Fort Valley State | No. 17 | The Matadome
Northridge, CA |
W, 3-0 | 25-16
25-22 25-14 |
302 | 6-1 | — |
| Jan. 30
6:00 pm |
ESPN+ | Edward Waters | No. 17 | The Matadome
Northridge, CA |
W, 3-0 | 25-14
25-17 25-19 |
308 | 7-1 | — |
| Feb. 4
7:00 pm |
B1G+ | @ No. 4 USC | No. 16 | Galen Center
Los Angeles, CA |
L, 2-3 | 19-25
20-25 25-19 25-17 13-15 |
649 | 7-2 | — |
| Feb. 6
6:00 pm |
ESPN+ | No. 6 Pepperdine | No. 16 | The Matadome
Northridge, CA |
L, 0-3 | 22-25
18-25 10-25 |
480 | 7-3 | — |
| Feb. 13
7:00 pm |
B1G+ | @ No. 1 UCLA | No. 17 | Pauley Pavilion
Los Angeles, CA |
L, 0-3 | 18-25
20-25 22-25 |
1057 | 7-4 | — |
| Feb. 18
6:00 pm |
ESPN+ | No. 19 LMU | No. 17 | The Matadome
Northridge, CA |
W, 3-0 | 25-8
25-18 25-20 |
265 | 8-4 | — |
| Feb. 20
6:00 pm |
Not Televised | UC Merced | No. 17 | The Matadome
Northridge, CA |
W, 3-0 | 25-17
25-18 25-15 |
335 | 9-4 | — |
| Feb. 27
6:00 pm |
Not Televised | Cal Lutheran | No. 17 | The Matadome
Northridge, CA |
W, 3-0 | 25-21
25-21 25-13 |
219 | 10-4 | — |
| Mar. 3
7:00 pm |
ESPN+ | @ No. 11 UC San Diego
Big West |
No. 17 | LionTree Arena
La Jolla, CA |
L, 0-3 | 19-25
17-25 24-26 |
400 | 10-5 | 0-1 |
| Mar. 11
6:00 pm |
ESPN+ | Princeton | No. 17 | The Matadome
Northridge, CA |
W, 3-1 | 25-19
21-25 25-19 25-21 |
230 | 11-5 | 0-1 |
| Mar. 13
6:00 pm |
ESPN+ | No. 12 UC San Diego
Big West |
No. 17 | The Matadome
Northridge, CA |
L, 2-3 | 25-18
19-25 22-25 25-21 13-15 |
203 | 11-6 | 0-2 |
| Mar. 19
6:00 pm |
ESPN+ | Jessup | No. 17 | The Matadome
Northridge, CA |
W, 3-1 | 23-25
25-20 25-16 25-23 |
245 | 12-6 | 0-2 |
| Big West Conference Matches | |||||||||
| Mar. 27
6:00 pm |
ESPN+ | No. 3 Long Beach State | No. 18 | The Matadome
Northridge, CA |
L, 2-3 | 20-25
25-20 25-21 18-25 11-15 |
388 | 12-7 | 0-3 |
| Mar. 28
7:00 |
ESPN+ | @ No. 3 Long Beach State | No. 18 | Walter Pyramid
Long Beach, CA |
L, 0-3 | 21-25
16-25 14-25 |
1571 | 12-8 | 0-4 |
| Apr. 2
7:00 pm |
ESPN+ | @ No. 8 UC Santa Barbara | No. 18 | The Thunderdome
Santa Barbara, CA |
L, 0-3 | 19-25
19-25 22-25 |
519 | 12-9 | 0-5 |
| Apr. 4
6:00 pm |
ESPN+ | No. 8 UC Santa Barbara | No. 18 | The Matadome
Northridge, CA |
L, 1-3 | 19-25
25-17 18-25 26-28 |
435 | 12-10 | 0-6 |
| Apr. 9
6:00 pm |
ESPN+ | @ No. 6 UC Irvine | No. 18 | Bren Events Center
Irvine, CA |
L, 1-3 | 17-25
25-23 25-27 19-25 |
1132 | 12-11 | 0-7 |
| Apr. 11
6:00 pm |
ESPN+ | No. 6 UC Irvine | No. 18 | The Matadome
Northridge, CA |
L, 0-3 | 23-25
18-25 18-25 |
417 | 12-12 | 0-8 |
| Apr. 17
10:00 pm |
SPEC/ESPN+ | @ No. 2 Hawaii | No. 18 | Stan Sheriff Center
Honolulu, HI |
L, 0-3 | 20-25
16-25 16-25 |
8069 | 12-13 | 0-9 |
| Apr. 18
10:00 pm |
SPEC/ESPN+ | @ No. 2 Hawaii | No. 18 | Stan Sheriff Center
Honolulu, HI |
L, 1-3 | 15-25
25-21 14-25 16-25 |
9360 | 12-14 | 0-10 |
| The Hawaiian Islands presents the 2026 OUTRIGGER Big West Men’s Volleyball Championship | |||||||||
| Apr 23
5:00 pm |
SPEC/ESPN+ | (3)
No. 5 UC Irvine (Quarterfinals) |
(6)
No. 18 |
Bren Events Center
Irvine, CA |
L, 1-3 | 20-25
25-20 16-25 23-25 |
2964 | 12-15 | — |
Time: Pacific Standard Time