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. 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.

Previous season 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:

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 24 (4) 2 22 (2) 3 17T-4 9

Player No. Position Class George Bruening 5 Outside Hitter Redshirt Sophomore

Roster Source: No. Name Position Height Year Hometown1Riggs GuyOH6'3"So.Newport Beach, Calif.2Joe WallaceL/DS6'1"Jr.Los Gatos, Calif.3Josh AruyaMB6'9"JR.Mission Viejo, Calif.4Emmett MartinOH6'4"R-Jr.Mar Vista, Calif.5George BrueningOH6'10"R-So.Newport Beach, Calif.6Jason WalmerS/L5'9"R-So.Manhattan Beach, Calif.7William LawlerS6'2"Jr.Huntington Beach, Calif.8Julien PallyOH6'3"Fr.Santa Cruz, Calif.10Ryan PilkvistMB6'7"Fr.El Segundo, Calif.11Ethan SaintOH6'3"So.Laguna Niguel, Calif.12Dylan PilkvistMB6'7"Fr.El Segundo, Calif.13Mikey DenverMB6'6"R-Fr.Santa Barbara, Calif.14Marcelo Molina-AcedOH6'5"Fr.Hayward, Calif.15Cole SchobelS6'1"Jr.Costa Mesa, Calif.17William DrydenOPP6'7"Fr.Los Gatos, Calif.18Raglan KearOH6'7"R-Fr.Santa Barbara, Calif.20Andreas SchuetzOH/OPP6'4"Sr.Santa Barbara, Calif.21Ashton SaintOH/L6'3"R-So.Laguna Niguel, Calif.23Ben PearsonOH6'2"R-Jr.Santa Cruz, Calif.24Owen LoncarOH6'3"Sr.Pacific Palisades, Calif. Coaches Head Coach Rick McLaughlin18thAssociate Head CoachBlaine Nielsen7thAssistant coach 1 Jonah Seif7thAssistant coach 2 Randy DeWeese3rd

Schedule Source: DateTime TVRadio Opponents (Conf. Rank) Rank (Conf. Rank) Stadiums Scores Sets Attendance Overall BigWestJan. 8 2:00 pmESPN+Kentucky StateNo. 17Rob Gym Santa Barbara, CAW, 3-025-14 25-13 25-122001-0—Jan. 9 4:30 pmESPN+MaryvilleNo. 17Rob Gym Santa Barbara, CAW, 3-125-10 24-26 25-19 25-192-0—Jan. 10 7:00 pmESPN+HarvardNo. 17Rob Gym Santa Barbara, CAW, 3-122-25 25-18 25-14 25-193223-0—Jan. 16 7:00 pmESPN+The Master's University (CA)No. 17The Thunderdome Santa Barbara, CAW, 3-026-24 25-18 25-234734-0—Jan. 22 6:00 pmB1G+@ No. 14 StanfordNo. 17Maples Pavilion Stanford, CAL, 2-325-22 22-25 25-18 21-25 15-174194-1—Jan. 23 6:00 pmB1G+@ No. 14 StanfordNo. 17Maples Pavilion Stanford, CAW, 3-025-19 25-20 25-166095-1—Jan. 29 7:00 pmESPN+No. 8 BYUNo. 15Rob Gym Santa Barbara, CAL, 0-322-25 18-25 24-263975-2—Jan. 30 7:00 pmESPN+No. 8 BYUNo. 15The Thunderdome Santa Barbara, CAL, 0-327-29 20-25 20-256525-3—Feb. 5 7:00 pmNot Televised@ Cal LutheranNo. 15Gilbert Arena Thousand Oaks, CAW, 3-119-25 25-13 25-19 25-132076-3—Feb. 7 5:00 pmB1G+@ No. 4 USCNo. 15Galen Center Los Angeles, CAL, 0-321-25 23-25 16-2511256-4—Feb. 14 7:00 pmB1G+@ No. 6 PepperdineT-15Firestone Fieldhouse Malibu, CAL, 2-325-23 25-27 11-25 25-21 5-156306-5—Feb. 18 7:00 pmESPN+No. 6 PepperdineNo. 14The Thunderdome Santa Barbara, CAW, 3-025-23 25-21 26-243047-5—Feb 20 7:00 pmESPN+No. 19 Lincoln MemorialNo. 14The Thunderdome Santa Barbara, CAW, 3-125-22 25-20 19-25 25-193178-5—Feb 25 7:00 pmESPN+No. 1 UCLANo. 12The Thunderdome Santa Barbara, CAL, 0-323-25 26-28 30-3215958-6—Mar. 6 7:00 pmESPN+No. 11 UC San Diego Big WestNo. 12The Thunderdome Santa Barbara, CAW, 3-225-22 21-25 21-25 25-20 15-117389-61-0Mar. 11 6:00 pmESPN+@ No. 5 UC Irvine Big WestNo. 11Bren Event Center Irvine, CAL, 1-320-25 22-25 25-21 24-2613809-71-1Mar 13 7:00 pmESPN+No. 5 UC Irvine Big WestNo.11The Thunderdome Santa Barbara, CAW, 3-216-25 25-23 18-25 25-17 17-2510-72-1Mar 24 7:00 pmESPN+Cal LutheranNo. 8The Thunderdome Santa Barbara, CAW, 3-125-23 25-16 21-25 25-1832511-7 Mar. 27 10:00 pmESPN+@ No. 2 HawaiiNo. 8Stan Sheriff Center Honolulu, HIL, 1-323-25 18-25 25-19 22-25825811-82-2Mar. 28 10:00 pmESPN+@ No. 2 HawaiiNo. 8Stan Sheriff Center Honolulu, HIL, 0-316-25 22-25 13-25822011-92-3Apr. 2 7:00 pmESPN+No. 18 CSUNNo. 8The Thunderdome Santa Barbara, CAW, 3-025-19 25-19 25-2251912-9 3-3Apr. 4 6:00 pmESPN+@ No. 18 CSUNNo. 8Matadome Northridge, CAW, 3-125-19 17-25 25-18 28-2643513-94-3Apr. 10 7:00 pmESPN@ No. 3 Long Beach StateNo. 8Walter Pyramid Long Beach, CAL, 0-320-25 19-25 20-25213113-104-4Apr. 11 7:00 pmESPN+No. 3 Long Beach StateNo. 8The Thunderdome Santa Barbara, CAL, 0-313-25 20-25 21-25134113-114-5Apr. 18 6:00 pmESPN+@ No. 11 UC San DiegoNo. 9 LionTree Arena La Jolla, CAW, 3-212-25 31-29 25-18 15-9102414-115-5Apr. 23ESPN+(5) No. 11 UC San Diego (Quarterfinals)(6) No. 9Bren Events Center Irvine, CAL, 3-019-25 22-25 22-25—14-12— Time: Pacific Standard Time

Rankings Source: +WeeksPollPre12345678910111213141516FinalAVCA1717171715T-1514121211888899

References