LOS ANGELES – The UCLA women’s volleyball program will open its 2026 campaign with a nonconference slate that begins Friday, Aug. 28 at Long Beach State. The early schedule under first-year head coach Matt Werle features a mix of NCAA Tournament participants, local foes, and a trip to Las Vegas for the Lucky Aces Volleyball Invitational.
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UCLA will host its home opener at Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom Financial for a return matchup against Long Beach State on Aug. 29 before heading into a demanding September road stretch.
The Bruins travel to Lexington for the Big Ten/SEC Challenge against national runners-up, Kentucky, on Sept. 2, followed by a pair of contests at Miami on Sept. 4-5. UCLA continues its nonconference slate with visits to Utah State, BYU, and Utah from Sept. 9-13.
The Bruins then head to Las Vegas for the Lucky Aces Volleyball Invitational at Orleans Arena, taking on Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, Iowa State, and Hawaii from Sept. 18-20.
UCLA opens Big Ten play on Sept. 24 at Indiana, followed by a road match at Northwestern on Sept. 26. The Bruins return home the following weekend to host Michigan State and Michigan in their conference home openers on Oct. 2-3.
The remainder of the Big Ten schedule features marquee matchups both home and away, including home matches against Penn State (Oct. 16), Ohio State (Oct. 18), Minnesota (Oct. 30), Wisconsin (Nov. 1), Washington (Nov. 12), Oregon (Nov. 14), and crosstown rival USC (Nov. 17).
The Big Ten Conference will usher in a new era of collegiate volleyball this fall with the launch of its inaugural tournament November 20-25, 2026, at Fishers Event Center, home of Major League Volleyball’s Indy Ignite.
The top 15 teams in the regular-season standings will qualify for the tournament, bringing the nation’s premier volleyball programs together in one venue for the first time.
Three matches will be played in the opening round of the tournament, followed by four second-round matches. The competition will then progress through the quarterfinals and semifinals, culminating with the championship match slated for November 25.
| Date | Opponent | Location |
|---|---|---|
| Fri., Aug. 28 | at Long Beach State | Long Beach, Calif. |
| Sat., Aug. 29 | Long Beach State | Los Angeles, Calif. |
| Wed., Sept. 2 | at Kentucky¹ | Lexington, Ky. |
| Fri., Sept. 4 | at Miami | Miami, Fla. |
| Sat., Sept. 5 | at Miami | Miami, Fla. |
| Wed., Sept. 9 | at Utah State | Logan, Utah |
| Fri., Sept. 11 | at BYU | Provo, Utah |
| Sun., Sept. 13 | at Utah | Salt Lake City, Utah |
| Fri., Sept. 18 | vs. Texas A&M–Corpus Christi² | Las Vegas, Nev. |
| Sat., Sept. 19 | vs. Iowa State² | Las Vegas, Nev. |
| Sun., Sept. 20 | vs. Hawaii² | Las Vegas, Nev. |
| Thu., Sept. 24 | at Indiana* | Bloomington, Ind. |
| Sat., Sept. 26 | at Northwestern* | Evanston, Ill. |
| Fri., Oct. 2 | Michigan State* | Los Angeles, Calif. |
| Sat., Oct. 3 | Michigan* | Los Angeles, Calif. |
| Fri., Oct. 9 | at Maryland* | College Park, Md. |
| Sat., Oct. 10 | at Rutgers* | Piscataway, N.J. |
| Fri., Oct. 16 | Penn State* | Los Angeles, Calif. |
| Sun., Oct. 18 | Ohio State* | Los Angeles, Calif. |
| Thu., Oct. 22 | at Nebraska* | Lincoln, Neb. |
| Sat., Oct. 24 | at Iowa* | Iowa City, Iowa |
| Fri., Oct. 30 | Minnesota* | Los Angeles, Calif. |
| Sun., Nov. 1 | Wisconsin* | Los Angeles, Calif. |
| Thu., Nov. 5 | at Illinois* | Champaign, Ill. |
| Sat., Nov. 7 | at Purdue* | West Lafayette, Ind. |
| Thu., Nov. 12 | Washington* | Los Angeles, Calif. |
| Sat., Nov. 14 | Oregon* | Los Angeles, Calif. |
| Tue., Nov. 17 | USC* | Los Angeles, Calif. |
*Indicates Big Ten Conference match
¹ Big Ten/SEC Challenge
² Lucky Aces Volleyball Invitational (Orleans Arena, Las Vegas, Nev.)