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The defending NCAA champions will open the season right where it left off in the national coaches poll.
Hawai’i received all but one first-place vote to finish at No. 1 in the preseason coaches poll that was released Tuesday.
The Rainbow Warriors ended last season repeating as national champions and now are attempting to become the first program since the 1990s to win three consecutive NCAA titles.
Setter Jakob Thelle highlights the returning starters for Hawai’i. The 2022 National Server of the Year finished last season with a nation-best 0.59 aces per game average and guided the offense to the nation’s fifth-best attack percentage at .340.
UCLA, which reached the NCAA Tournament semifinals last season, was the only other school to garner a first-place vote in the preseason poll. The Bruins were ranked No. 2 and received 295 points – 33 points fewer than the Rainbow Warriors.
The NCAA Tournament finalists Long Beach State finished at No. 3, while Penn State and Pepperdine round out the top five of the 15-team poll.
Pepperdine will open the 2023 season as it plays host to Lincoln Memorial on Wednesday.
2023 Preseason National Coaches Poll
1. Hawai’i – 328 (21) points
2. UCLA – 295 (1) points
3. Long Beach State – 284 points
4. Penn State – 254 points
5. Pepperdine – 216 points
6. Ball State – 198 points
7. UC Santa Barbara – 187 points
8. UC Irvine – 161 points
9. Stanford – 156 points
10. USC – 133 points
11. Grand Canyon – 118 points
12. Loyola – 106 points
13. Ohio State – 72 points
14. Lewis – 47 points
15. Princeton – 29 points
Others receiving votes: NJIT 22; BYU 12; CSUN 9; UC San Diego 8; Purdue Fort Wayne 2