LAS VEGAS (UNLVRebels.com) - The UNLV volleyball team was picked to finish sixth in the 2026 Mountain West Preseason Poll, which was voted on by the Conference's 10 head coaches. Individually, Rebel redshirt junior outside hitter Jaida Harris was named the MW Preseason Player of the Year along with earning All-MW Preseason Team honors.
UNLV received 53 points in the poll, which was voted on by the league's 10 head coaches. Mountain West newcomer UTEP claimed the top spot, accumulating 84 points and seven first-place votes. Fellow MW newcomer UC Davis was second in the poll (80 points) and garnered four first–place votes, while Grand Canyon was third (70 points) in the poll and hauled in the remaining two first-place votes. Furthermore, Wyoming took the fourth spot with 69 points.
Rounding out the poll were conference newcomer Hawai'i (5th, 67 points), San José State (7th, 40 points), Air Force (8th, 36 points), UNR (9th, 26 points) and New Mexico (10th, 25 points).
The Scarlet & Gray, who are led by fourth-year head coach Malia Shoji, are coming off of a 13-win campaign in 2025. The Rebels closed out the year 13-15 overall and 7-11 (9th MW).
Harris, who is a Las Vegas native, was named the MW Newcomer of the Year for the 2025 season and joined the All-MW team after transferring from Long Beach State. The outside hitter saw her name in several top MW-only statistical categories, including third in points (297.5), fourth in kills (254), tied for fourth in service aces (22), fifth in points per set (4.25) and tied for fifth in both kills per set (3.63) and service aces per set (0.31). Harris led the Scarlet & Gray in four of those aforementioned figures as well as attack attempts (696).
The rest of the All-MW Preseason Team includes: Bella Nunez (Grand Canyon), Cha'lei Reid (Hawai'i), Ximena Cordero Barr and Mia Starr (UC Davis), Ema Uskokovic (UTEP) and Paige Lauterwasser (Wyoming).
2026 UNLV VOLLEYBALL SEASON: The Rebels will host an exhibition match on Saturday, August 22 against Colorado State at 1 pm in The Pavilion. Admission is free.
The regular season begins for UNLV at the Players Era Volleyball Showcase against five-time national champions Nebraska (Aug. 29) and TCU (Aug. 30) at T-Mobile Arena.
UNLV will host its first home match on Friday, September 18 against Southeastern Louisiana in the first of three matches in the annual Rebel Challenge. The full season's schedule may be found here.
The 2026 CU1 MW Women's Volleyball Championship presented by Palms Casino Resort is set to begin on Tuesday, Nov. 24, and conclude Wednesday, Nov. 25 at The Pavilion in Las Vegas.
UNLV SEASON TICKETS: Season tickets for the 2026 home schedule, which are available to get now for as low as $50, can be purchased here. Season tickets for active alumni, faculty & staff as well as senior Rebels (62+) are available for purchase at $40, regular season ticket pricing being marked at only $50. Single-game tickets will be available at a later date.
