July 11, 2002

Santa Barbara, Calif. - The UC Santa Barbara women's volleyball team will open its 2002 campaign ranked 15th nationally in Volleyball Magazine's annual preseason poll.

The Gauchos return nine letterwinners and five starters, including two-time First Team All-Big West Conference performer Danielle Bauer, from last year's 17-14 squad which placed third in the highly-competitive league. In 2001, UCSB also remained one of only four programs to qualify for every NCAA Tournament dating back to its inception in 1981. Legendary head coach Kathy Gregory returns for her 28th season in Santa Barbara.

The Gauchos open the 2002 season on Aug. 30 at the SDSU Invitational in San Diego, Calif., against Florida International. FIU is one of 10 UCSB opponents this season which advanced to the 2001 NCAA Tournament. Santa Barbara will play seven matches against fellow members of the Volleyball Magazine top-20, including third-ranked USC, No. 6 Pepperdine, seventh-ranked Long Beach State (twice), No. 9 Pacific (twice) and No. 12 Wisconsin.

VOLLEYBALL MAGAZINE 2002 PRESEASON POLL
1. Stanford
2. Hawai'i
3. USC
4. Nebraska
5. Florida
6. Pepperdine
7. Long Beach State
8. Arizona
9. Pacific
10. Ohio State
11. Utah
12. Wisconsin
13. UCLA
14. Northern Iowa
15. UC SANTA BARBARA
16. Michigan State
17. Penn State
18. Illinois
19. Notre Dame
20. Colorado