UC Santa Barbara women’s volleyball was picked fourth in the Big West Preseason Poll, and Gaucho sophomore outside hitter Eva Travis was named as one of seven all-conference preseason selections.
Travis was named the Big West Freshman of the Year last season. She leads a solid core of returning players that look to get back to the NCAA Tournament under third-year coach Matt Jones.
Hawai’i edged out Cal Poly for the No. 1 spot in the poll. Hawai’i, the defending Big West Tournament champion, compiled 94 points in the voting of the 11 conference coaches while Cal Poly, last year’s regular-season winner, had 92 points. Both schools received five first-place votes.
UCSB and UC Davis each collected one vote.
UC Davis (3rd, 75 points), UCSB (4th, 73) and Long Beach State (5th, 68) are in the next grouping in the preseason poll. UC Irvine, UC San Diego, CSUN, Cal State Bakersfield, Cal State Fullerton and UC Riverside round out the list. The top six finishers in the final standings qualify for the Big West Tournament at the end of the season.
The Big West schools begin play on Friday. UCSB opens the season with two matches against San Jose State on Friday and Saturday on the road.
The Gauchos will play USC, Creighton and San Diego at the Trojan Invitational, Sept. 5-7, before making their home debut on Sept.11 against Kansas State in the opener of the Thunderdome Classic. They’ll also play Vanderbilt on Sept. 12 and Northern Colorado on Sept. 13.
2025 Preseason Coaches’ Poll
1. Hawai’i — 94 (5)
2. Cal Poly — 92 (5)
3. UC Davis — 75 (1)
4. UC Santa Barbara — 73 (1)
5. Long Beach State – 68
6. UC Irvine — 53
7. UC San Diego — 50
8. CSUN — 42
9. Cal State Bakersfield — 23
10. Cal State Fullerton — 21
11. UC Riverside — 14
**Parentheses denote first place votes.
2025 Preseason Coaches Team
Emme Bullis – Cal Poly
Ally Chandler – UC Davis
Bri Gunderson – Hawai’i
Campbell Jensen – UC Irvine
Jade Light — UC Davis
Eva Travis – UC Santa Barbara