LA JOLLA, Calif. - The UC San Diego men's volleyball team and head coach Brad Rostratter officially announced the team's 2026 competition schedule Monday.

The season slate is highlighted by 14 home matches inside LionTree Arena, six of those against Big West rivals.

Season tickets are set to go on sale on Tuesday, Dec. 2, at 10 a.m. Pacific through the Triton Box Office. Single match tickets will be available for purchase on Dec. 16. 

The Tritons ring in the new year by making a return visit to the North American Challenge. Hosted by Long Beach State Jan. 2-4, UC San Diego will play four exhibition matches against Canadian universities - two apiece versus Alberta and Calgary.

A trio of home matches against teams from around the nation is up next. The Tritons entertain Jessup University out of Northern California (Jan. 6), Daemen University from upstate New York (Jan. 9), and Rockhurst University from Missouri (Jan. 11).

UC San Diego travels to Provo, Utah, Jan. 16-17 for two matches against BYU. It will be the first time the two squads have met since 2022 when the Tritons swept the Cougars in a pair of five-set thrillers at Smith Fieldhouse.

LionTree Arena will be rocking on Jan. 23 as perennial powerhouse and 2025 national runner-up UCLA comes in. The 2024 meeting between the Tritons and Bruins drew a record crowd of 2,474 fans to La Jolla.

To close out the first month of competition, UC San Diego travels to the greater Chicago area to face Lewis (Jan. 30) and Loyola (Jan. 31), both members of the Midwestern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association.    

February begins with a home-and-home series against CUI. The Tritons and Golden Eagles meet on Feb. 11 in La Jolla and then again on Feb. 14 in Irvine.

Continuing non-conference play, UC San Diego hosts fellow University of California institution UC Merced on Feb. 16. 

On Feb. 21, the Tritons head north to San Mateo County to play at Menlo in Atherton.

A second home-and-home series, this time with Vanguard, will be the final matches prior to conference play beginning. The Tritons and Lions play on Feb. 25 in Orange County and the rematch will be Feb. 27 at LionTree Arena.

Big West action starts in La Jolla on March 3 with CSUN. On March 6, the Tritons head up the coast for another conference match-up, this one at UC Santa Barbara.   

A quick break in conference play is slated for March 9 when Princeton makes the trip from New Jersey to California.

The Tritons then delve into the thick of their Big West schedule as they play their next eight matches against conference teams. Home dates include UC Irvine (March 28), reigning national champion Long Beach State (April 3), Hawai'i (April 10 and April 11), and UC Santa Barbara (April 18). The match against the Gauchos will also be Senior Night.

The Big West Championship is set for April 23-25 at UC Irvine's Bren Events Center. Last season, UC San Diego took down UCSB, 3-2, in a quarterfinal before falling against Long Beach State in the semifinal round in Honolulu.

The Tritons finished with an 18-12 overall record in 2025, their most victories since Rostratter became head coach prior to the 2023 season. The Tritons were ranked as high as 10th in the AVCA National Poll.