Cal Poly Volleyball Ranked No. 21 in Final AVCA Poll
12/23/2025 11:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif. — The Cal Poly volleyball program made more history this week, finishing the season ranked No. 21 nationally in the final American Volleyball Coaches Association poll released Monday.
The ranking is the highest by the Mustangs to finish a year since ending the 2007 season at No. 11. This is the 13th time in program history the team has finished a season ranked since the AVCA poll started releasing weekly rankings in 1982.
Overall, this is the highest national ranking for the Mustangs since checking in at No. 13 on Nov. 26, 2018.
The national ranking for Cal Poly comes as no surprise after the team had one of its most successful seasons in program history this fall.
The Cinderella story of this year’s NCAA Volleyball Tournament, Cal Poly upended No. 5 seed BYU and then No. 4 seed USC in five sets to advance to the Sweet 16 for the seventh time in program history and the first time since 2007. USC finished the season ranked No. 17 and BYU 25th. As the lone unseeded team to reach the Sweet 16 this season, Cal Poly made a name for itself nationally during its incredible run.
In the Third Round of the NCAA Tournament, the Mustangs fell to No. 1 seed Kentucky — who finished as the national runner-up — in three sets in the Lexington Regional semifinals, capping off an unprecedented season. Cal Poly ended the year with a 27-8 overall record, the most wins under head coach Caroline Walters and the program’s highest win total since 2017.
Cal Poly secured its spot in the NCAA postseason for the 18th time in program history and first time since 2019 by capturing the Big West Championship. The second-seeded Mustangs dominated host Long Beach State in the semifinals before decisively defeating top-seed UC Davis in four sets in the championship match to secure the program’s seventh conference title in the Division I era.
The Mustangs posted a perfect 15-0 record at home this season, and have won 19 straight inside Mott Athletics Center dating back to last season, the second-longest home win streak in program history.
