2026 UC Santa Barbara Gauchos men's volleyball team
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- Rick McLaughlin (18th season)
| 2026 UC Santa Barbara Gauchos men's volleyball | |
|---|---|
| Conference | Big West Conference |
| Ranking | |
| Coaches | No. 8 |
| Record | 14–12 (5–5 Big West) |
| Head coach |
|
| Associate head coach | Blaine Nielsen (7th season) |
| Assistant coaches |
|
| Home stadium | The Thunderdome Rob Gym |
The 2026 UC Santa Barbara Gauchos men's volleyball team is the varsity intercollegiate volleyball program of the University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB). The Gauchos, led by head coach Rick McLaughlin, play their home games in Rob Gym and the Thunderdome located on campus in Santa Barbara, California. UC Santa Barbara has been a member of the Big West Conference since the leagues inception in 1969 when it was then known as the Pacific Coast Athletic Association (PCAA). UC Santa Barbara began the season ranked 17th in the nation.[1] This year is also the first year that twelve teams will have a chance to play in the NCAA men's volleyball tournament, as the NCAA expanded the tournament to accommodate the sport's growth.[2]
| 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 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Last season, the Gauchos finished with a 12–16 record, going 3–7 in the Big West, and finished fifth in the conference.
Preseason
Source:[3]
Both the preseason All-Big West team, and the Big West Coaches' Poll were released on December 29, 2025. UC Santa Barbara was tied for fourth among CSUN and UC San Diego, 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| George Bruening | 5 | Outside Hitter | Redshirt Sophomore |
Roster
Source:[4]
| No. | Name | Position | Height | Year | Hometown |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Riggs Guy | OH | 6'3" | So. | Newport Beach, Calif. |
| 2 | Joe Wallace | L/DS | 6'1" | Jr. | Los Gatos, Calif. |
| 3 | Josh Aruya | MB | 6'9" | JR. | Mission Viejo, Calif. |
| 4 | Emmett Martin | OH | 6'4" | R-Jr. | Mar Vista, Calif. |
| 5 | George Bruening | OH | 6'10" | R-So. | Newport Beach, Calif. |
| 6 | Jason Walmer | S/L | 5'9" | R-So. | Manhattan Beach, Calif. |
| 7 | William Lawler | S | 6'2" | Jr. | Huntington Beach, Calif. |
| 8 | Julien Pally | OH | 6'3" | Fr. | Santa Cruz, Calif. |
| 10 | Ryan Pilkvist | MB | 6'7" | Fr. | El Segundo, Calif. |
| 11 | Ethan Saint | OH | 6'3" | So. | Laguna Niguel, Calif. |
| 12 | Dylan Pilkvist | MB | 6'7" | Fr. | El Segundo, Calif. |
| 13 | Mikey Denver | MB | 6'6" | R-Fr. | Santa Barbara, Calif. |
| 14 | Marcelo Molina-Aced | OH | 6'5" | Fr. | Hayward, Calif. |
| 15 | Cole Schobel | S | 6'1" | Jr. | Costa Mesa, Calif. |
| 17 | William Dryden | OPP | 6'7" | Fr. | Los Gatos, Calif. |
| 18 | Raglan Kear | OH | 6'7" | R-Fr. | Santa Barbara, Calif. |
| 20 | Andreas Schuetz | OH/OPP | 6'4" | Sr. | Santa Barbara, Calif. |
| 21 | Ashton Saint | OH/L | 6'3" | R-So. | Laguna Niguel, Calif. |
| 23 | Ben Pearson | OH | 6'2" | R-Jr. | Santa Cruz, Calif. |
| 24 | Owen Loncar | OH | 6'3" | Sr. | Pacific Palisades, Calif. |
Coaches
| Position | Name | Season |
|---|---|---|
| Head Coach | Rick McLaughlin | 18th |
| Associate Head Coach | Blaine Nielsen | 7th |
| Assistant coach 1 | Jonah Seif | 7th |
| Assistant coach 2 | Randy DeWeese | 3rd |