LA JOLLA, Calif. - The University of California San Diego men's volleyball team is tied for seventh in the national rankings as the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) announced its annual Division I/Division II preseason poll Monday.
Now in its fourth year as a member of the Big West Conference, UC San Diego totaled 123 points to tie with Pepperdine, which is out of the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation (MPSF), for seventh place.
BYU (MPSF) earned the poll's top spot with 238 points. The Cougars garnered 14 first-place votes. Five of the top 10 are from the Big West including Hawai'i at No. 2, UC Santa Barbara at No. 3, Long Beach State at No. 4, UC Irvine at No. 6, and UC San Diego at No. 7.
During their historic 2020 season, the Tritons climbed to No. 6 in the national rankings, their highest ever.
UC San Diego returns five starters for the 2021 season, which is currently on hold due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Leading the way will be middle blocker
Shane Benetz, middle blocker
Logan Clark, outside hitter
Wyatt Harrison, All-American and All-Big West First Team outside hitter
Kyle McCauley, and opposite
Collin Shannon.
Despite the 2020 season being cut short due to the pandemic, the Tritons accomplished many program firsts and bests. Here's a look at the impressive list of achievements the team compiled during its third season as a Big West Conference competitor.
• UC San Diego finished with an overall record of 14-5, the team's most victories since the school moved to NCAA Division II status in 2001
• The team defeated seven nationally-ranked squads (No. 3 UCLA, No. 5/6 UC Irvine, No. 10 Penn State, No. 11 Loyola, No. 13 Princeton, No. 14 Concordia Irvine)
• On Feb. 15, the Tritons beat UC Irvine on the road to earn their first ever Big West Conference win
• Junior outside hitter
Kyle McCauley was named an AVCA First Team All-American and the AVCA National Newcomer of the Year, both program firsts
• Senior setter
Connor Walbrecht was named an AVCA Second Team All-American, a program first
• Between Feb. 4 and Feb. 28, the Tritons reeled off six-consecutive victories, tying their longest win streak in program history
• The Tritons broke into the national poll on Jan. 27 (No. 15), the first time they had been ranked since 2013
• The team's sweep of No. 3 UCLA on Jan. 17 was its first win against the Bruins since 2012
• UC San Diego led the Big West Conference in points, kills, and assists
• McCauley led all Big West Conference players in points and kills
• Walbrecht led all Big West Conference players in assists and digs
• Walbrecht's 705 assists were the most of any NCAA DI/DII player in the country
• Junior outside hitter
Wyatt Harrison led the Big West Conference in service aces
• UC San Diego finished with a .280 team hitting percentage, its best since 2010
| 2021 AVCA DIVISION I/DIVISION II PRESEASON NATIONAL POLL |
| Rank |
Team |
Points |
2020 Record |
Final 2020 Ranking |
| 1 |
BYU (14 first-place votes) |
238 |
17-1 |
1 |
| 2 |
Hawai'i |
224 |
15-1 |
2 |
| 3 |
UC Santa Barbara |
200 |
14-2 |
3 |
| 4 |
Long Beach State |
191 |
10-1 |
4 |
| 5 |
Lewis |
187 |
15-4 |
5 |
| 6 |
UC Irvine |
147 |
10-7 |
T-6 |
| T-7 |
Pepperdine |
123 |
7-6 |
8 |
| T-7 |
UC San Diego |
123 |
14-5 |
T-6 |
| 9 |
UCLA |
109 |
10-9 |
9 |
| 10 |
Grand Canyon |
99 |
14-7 |
11 |
| 11 |
Penn State |
77 |
11-7 |
10 |
| 12 |
Concordia Irvine |
49 |
10-10 |
13 |
| 13 |
George Mason |
37 |
10-7 |
15 |
| 14 |
Ohio State |
28 |
11-8 |
NR |
| 15 |
Stanford |
24 |
6-11 |
14 |
Others receiving votes and listed on two or more ballots: NJIT 19, Princeton 19, Purdue Fort Wayne 15, Ball State 8
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About UC San Diego Athletics
After two decades as one of the most successful programs in NCAA Division II, the UC San Diego intercollegiate athletics program begins a new era in 2020 as a member of the Big West Conference in NCAA Division I. The 23-sport Tritons earned 30 team and nearly 150 individual national championships during its time in Divisions II and III and helped guide more than 1,400 scholar-athletes to All-America honors. In addition, 83 Tritons have been named Academic All-Americans, while 37 have earned prestigious NCAA Post Graduate Scholarships. UC San Diego scholar-athletes exemplify the academic ideals of one of the world's preeminent institutions, graduating at an average rate of 91 percent, one of the highest rates among institutions at all divisions. For more information on the Tritons, visit UCSDtritons.com or follow UC San Diego Athletics on social media @UCSDtritons.
