There were no surprises when the field was announced for the 12-team NCAA men’s volleyball tournament on Sunday, with UCLA, Hawaii, Long Beach State and Ball State named the top four seeds and the hosts for three-team regionals later this week.
UCLA, which won the 2023 and 2024 national championships before losing to Long Beach in the 2025 final, is the top seed and will play all of its remaining matches at Pauley Pavilion, with UCLA already scheduled to host the NCAA semifinals and final on May 9-11.
The Bruins (29-1), chasing their 22nd NCAA title, will meet the winner of a Friday match between at-large entry UC Irvine (18-8) and EIVA champion Penn State (22-7) in a regional final on Saturday at 5 p.m. The winner advances to the final four.
No. 3 seed Long Beach State (24-4), which is coming off a thrilling five-set victory over rival Hawaii in the Big West Tournament final, will meet the winner of a Friday match between at-large entry Loyola Chicago (20-8) and NEC champion Saint Francis (18-11) on Saturday at 6 p.m. at the Pyramid.
No. 2 seed Hawaii (27-5) will meet the winner of a Friday match between at-large entry USC (19-7) and Conference Carolinas champ Belmont Abbey (20-5) on Saturday at 7 p.m. PT in Honolulu.
No. 4 seed Ball State (24-4), the MIVA champion, will meet the winner of a Friday match between at-large entry Pepperdine (23-6) and SIAC champion Fort Valley State (16-12) on Saturday at 3 p.m. PT in Muncie, Ind.
Since 2012, every national champion has won two in a row, which could bode well for Long Beach, which dethroned UCLA in last year’s final in Columbus, Ohio, for the program’s fourth crown (1991, 2018, 2019, 2025).
