The University of Hawai’i beach volleyball team is set to begin its 2026 season under new head coach Danny Alvarez at the Outrigger Duke Kahanamoku Beach Classic, taking place from February 19 to 21 at Queen’s Beach in Waikiki. The tournament will feature seven teams, including six ranked in the national top 10: No. 1 UCLA, No. 2 Stanford, No. 4 USC, No. 6 Texas, No. 7 Loyola Marymount (LMU), and No. 9 Cal, alongside the host team ranked at No. 16.
Teams will compete in a round-robin format across three days with seven matches scheduled each day. Admission to the event is free and live scoring will be available on HawaiiAthletics.com.
Hawai’i returns with a roster of 19 players, including twelve from last year’s squad that finished with a record of 14-21 and was ranked No. 19 in the final AVCA poll. Notable returnees include all-Big West selections Sarah Burton and Caprice Lorenzo, as well as previous all-conference honorees Sydney Amiatu, Sydney Miller, Julia Lawrenz, and Julia Thelle who returns healthy this season. Seven newcomers join the team this year, highlighted by mid-year transfer Izadora Stedile—an All-American indoor player from Hofstra—and Kiera Cornman, who was named New York State Gatorade Player of the Year for 2024.
The Rainbow Wahine’s roster features athletes from Australia, Brazil, Guam, Norway, and five U.S. states: Arizona, California, Colorado, New York and Texas. In the preseason Big West poll, Hawai’i was picked to finish third behind Cal Poly and Long Beach State.
Danny Alvarez takes over as head coach after serving nine prior seasons within the program—most recently as an assistant during the 2023 campaign—and brings three decades of coaching experience to his new role. Alvarez contributed significantly to building Hawai’i into a national contender early on; during his tenure as assistant coach between 2012-2019 and again in recent years he helped guide the program to six consecutive national tournament appearances and three Big West titles.
Supporting Alvarez are second-year assistants Victoria Prince—a former indoor All-American for Hawai’i who led Oaks Christian High School in California to a top-five national ranking—and Lea Kruse who played three seasons for UH before joining as an assistant coach.
This season’s schedule includes two home tournaments at Queen’s Beach within the first three weeks: after hosting this week’s classic they will also hold the Heineken Queen’s Cup from March 5-7. Senior Weekend is scheduled for April 11-12 at Ching Complex where UH will face Chaminade, Santa Clara and Oregon. The team will also participate in tournaments held in California and Arizona later this spring.
The Big West Championship is set for April 23-24 at Cal Poly while Gulf Shores, Alabama will host the NCAA Championships May 1-3.
Historically against their upcoming opponents: UH holds a record of 3-19 versus USC (with seven straight losses), is tied with Cal at five wins apiece but has lost their last three meetings against them; they are currently on a fifteen-match losing streak against UCLA; have won ten out of sixteen matchups with Stanford; lead LMU historically but have lost their last six encounters; and are ahead against Texas with three wins out of four total meetings.
