The562’s coverage of Long Beach State athletics for the 2025-26 season is sponsored by Marilyn Bohl.
There wasn’t an ounce of sweat for the Long Beach State men’s volleyball team at its live watch party for the NCAA bracket release on Selection Sunday. The Beach (24-4) earned an automatic bid less than 24 hours earlier with a five-set win over Hawai’i to represent the Big West as conference champions in the NCAA tournament.
More importantly, LBSU learned its seeding, drawing the No. 3 seed to host one of the regional sites at the LBS Financial Credit Union Pyramid as one of the top four seeds. The Beach will receive a bye on Friday and face the winner of Loyola Chicago and Saint Francis on Saturday with a trip to the NCAA Final Four on the line.
“I think the NCAA got it right,” LBSU coach Nick MacRae said of the draw. “We just won our conference tournament and now we’re going into weekend number two with a bye. We get the chance to play Saturday and stamp our spot in the NCAA Final Four. It means we hold all the cards—we’re in charge of the situation. So to do it in front of our fans is a credit to what our guys have done all season long.”
The NCAA previously used an eight-team bracket hosted entirely at one site, but the new 12-team format adds two regional rounds with the top four seeds hosting sites that include three teams each. The four teams that advance will make up the Final Four, with the remaining rounds set for Pauley Pavilion on the campus of UCLA on May 9-11.
The new format gives seniors like standout outside hitter Skyler Varga one last opportunity to play at home, as it will be the Canadian’s final game in the Pyramid on Saturday regardless of the result.
“It was a bittersweet moment on senior night playing what we thought could be our last game in the Pyramid, but getting one more game in with LB Nation is going to be sweet,” Varga said. “It’s going to be huge for us with a packed-out crowd, and the Pyramid is the best place to play in all of volleyball. It’s hard to argue with that.”
The Pyramid will also host Loyola Chicago (20-8) and Saint Francis (18-11) in it’s regional matchup on Friday. Loyola Chicago entered the bracket as the MIVA runner-up after falling to Ball State in the championship, while Saint Francis captured its first NEC title to punch its ticket to the NCAA tournament.
“They’re going to come play a high level of volleyball,” MacRae said of the two. “Every team in the NCAA tournament has an opportunity to battle, so on our end we’re going to lean on our maturity and swagger and mix that with our hunger to go out and compete.”
The regional finals between LBSU and Loyola Chicago/Saint Francis will take place in the Pyramid on Saturday at 6pm.
