FRIDAY, MAY 1
NO. 9 LONG BEACH STATE VS. NO. 8 CALIFORNIA | 10 A.M. PT | ESPN2 | LIVE STATS
SATURDAY, MAY 2
TBD
SUNDAY, MAY 3
TBD
 
 
GULF SHORES, Ala. – The No. 8 California beach volleyball team makes its fifth consecutive trip to the NCAA Championship this week. The Golden Bears (23-13) take on ninth-seeded Long Beach State in Friday's first round, beginning at 10 a.m. PT/noon CT.

Of its previous four trips to the NCAA Championship, Cal has advanced to the second round twice. Each time, it defeated the 49ers in the first round to get there (2023, 2024).

The No. 8 seed is tied for the Bears' second-highest in program history. Cal was the No. 7 seed in 2024.

 
NCAA HSTORY
The Bears are 2-4 all-time in NCAA Championship matches, having advanced to the second round with first-round victories in 2023 and 2024. Cal beat Long Beach State in the first round and fell to UCLA in the second round in both of those seasons. The Bears' seeding has ranged from No. 7 to No. 11 over the years.
2022
No. 6 LSU 3, No. 11 California 2
2023
No. 8 California 3, No. 9 Long Beach State 2
No. 1 UCLA 3, No. 8 California 1
2024
No. 7 California 3, No. 10 Long Beach State 1
No. 2 UCLA 3, No. 7 California 0
2025
No. 7 Texas, No. 10 California

MPSF CHAMPIONSHIPS RECAP
The Bears advanced to the cusp of the semifinals of last week's 2026 MPSF Championships in Huntington Beach before falling to No. 2 UCLA. Cal earned the No. 5 seed in the tournament and opened with a 3-1 setback to No. 4 USC before bouncing back to defeat eighth-seeded Washington, 3-1. That set up the showdown with the Bruins, who took a 3-0 victory.

DONLEY, SHERMAN BREAK OWN SINGLE-SEASON MARK
Cal's No. 1 pair of Emma Donley and Portia Sherman broke their own program single-season pairs wins record last week with their win over Washington during the MPSF Championships. The victory gave them their 29th of the season, eclipsing the 28 victories they amassed as a pair last season. Donley and Sherman are 29-5 overall this season and are ranked No. 4 nationally by TruVolley.

SEASON REFLECTIONS
The Bears are well-positioned to make a deep run this postseason, with three wins over top-10 opponents and several other narrow losses to the nation's top teams. Cal has victories over then-No. 4 Texas, then-No. 8 Arizona State and then-No. 8 and defending NCAA champion TCU. All 13 of the Bears' defeats have come against top-10 teams, including six by a 3-2 score. Ten of their victories overall have been against nationally ranked opponents.

DONLEY NAMED SEMIFINALIST FOR NATIONAL PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Junior Emma Donley was named a semifinalist for the 2026 AVCA National Collegiate Beach Player of the Year Award earlier this month. Donley, partnering with senior Portia Sherman, is 29-5 this season playing exclusively as part of Cal's No. 1 pair. She has 10 victories over top-10 opponents and another seven over pairs that are nationally ranked. All five of Donley and Sherman's losses are against top-10 foes. Donley was not included on the list of the four finalists announced Wednesday that are still in contention for the award.

ONES BREAK CAREER RECORD
Earlier this season, Cal's top pair of Portia Sherman and Emma Donley became the program's all-time leader in career pair wins with 38, moving past Grace Campbell and Maddie Micheletti's previous standard of 37. Sherman and Donley's career-victory total now stands at 57.

CLIMBING THE CHARTS
The Bears have several players who have found themselves climbing the ranks of the program's all-time individual career wins list this season. Senior Portia Sherman is now up to 84 victories, which puts her in second place all-time. Junior Emma Donley is tied for sixh place with 79 career wins, senior Gia Fisher is eighth with 76 and Marilu Pally is tied for 9th with 71. Ella Dreibholz is the program's all-time wins leader with 105 in her career.

NEW HOME
The Bears will move into a new facility in 2027 – the Banatao Family Beach Volleyball Stadium. The project is being partially funded by Cal's successful Gender Equity Campaign that raised $8 million and allows for the campus' continued commitment to and compliance with Title IX – the landmark federal law that was enacted in 1972 that prohibits sex discrimination in any educational program or activity receiving any type of financial aid.

HEAD COACH MEAGAN OWUSU
Head Coach Meagan Owusu is in her 10th season at the helm at Cal and has established the Bears as a consistent national power. Cal has qualified for each of the past four NCAA Championships and has ended the season ranked in the top 12 for eight straight years – including four straight top-10 finishes. Owusu was also a defensive specialist for Cal's indoor program from 2007-2010 and helped the Bears reach their only two NCAA Final Fours in history.