Battleground States: California

Battleground States: California

We are back with another edition of Battleground States. The series where we go over the top commits in the deepest state recruiting classes. We discuss the possibilities of where they could commit this June and the trends of the previous years. This week, we are moving to a volleyball hotbed and state that traditionally produces many of the top players in the country: California. The original “State of Volleyball” California is home to 26 D1 programs. 

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State of California Division 1 Programs (26)

• California Baptist University (WAC)- Riverside, CA
• Cal Poly (Big West)- San Luis Obispo, CA
• Cal State Bakersfield (Big West)- Bakersfield, CA
• Cal State Fullerton (Big West)- Fullerton, CA
• Cal State Northridge (Big West)- Los Angeles, CA
• UC Berkeley/Cal (Pac-12)- Berkeley, CA
• Fresno State (Mountain West)- Fresno, CA
• Long Beach State (Big West)- Long Beach, CA
• Loyola Marymount (WCC)- Los Angeles, CA
• University of the Pacific (WCC)- Stockton, CA
• Pepperdine University (WCC)- Malibu, CA
• Sacramento State (Big Sky)- Sacramento, CA
• Saint Mary’s College (WCC)- Moraga, CA
• University of San Diego (WCC)- San Diego, CA
• San Diego State University (Mountain West)- San Diego,CA
• University of San Francisco (WCC)- San Francisco, CA
• San Jose State (Mountain West)- San Jose, CA
• Santa Clara University (WCC)- Santa Clara, CA
• Stanford University (ACC)- Stanford, CA
• UC Davis (Big West)- Davis, CA
• UC Irvine (Big West)- Irvine, CA
• UCLA (Big 10)- Los Angeles, CA
• UC Riverside (Big West)- Riverside, CA
• UC San Diego (Big West)- San Diego, CA
• UC Santa Barbara (Big West)- Santa Barbara, CA
• USC (Big 10)- Los Angeles, CA

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California schools owned womens’ volleyball for much of the first 40 years.. When the NCAA Volleyball Tournament started in 1981, a California school made the Final Four 28 straight years. Five California programs have multiple championships (Pacific, Long Beach State, USC, UCLA, and Stanford). Santa Clara, Cal, and San Diego, San Diego State, and San Jose State have all made final fours. However, 

Stanford holds the most NCAA Championships in the sports history (9) and are largely recognized as one of the “Big 3” when it comes to national volleyball recruiting. 

Since 2016, Stanford has 3 NCAA Championships and 4 Final Fours. Combine the national success with the massive population and California will always be a volleyball hotspot. 

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State of California Recruiting Trends:

2023’s

State’s #1 Player Committed: Stanford

State Top 10’s Prospects Signed In-State: 2

State Top 10’s Prospects that Signed with “Big 3”: 2

State  Top 10 Prospects that Committed to Traditional Top 25 Programs: 6

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2024’s

State’s #1 Player Committed: Wisconsin

State Top 10’s Prospects Signed In-State: 3

State Top 10’s Prospects that Signed with “Big 3”: 2

State  Top 10 Prospects that Committed to Traditional Top 25 Programs: 6

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2025’s

State’s #1 Player Committed: Stanford

State Top 10’s Prospects Signed In-State: 3

State Top 10’s Prospects that Signed with “Big 3”: 1

State  Top 10 Prospects that Committed to Traditional Top 25 Programs: 3

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Immediate Results: 2 California athletes Class of 2023 were AVCA All Americans last year as Freshman for Pitt in (Olivia Babcock and Torrey Stafford).

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State of California Recruiting Label: National Powerhouse

With the large number of D1 prospects each year, most colleges will target California athletes regardless of geography. However, the in-state loyalty is noticeable in Cali’s recruiting history, as most Big West schools target California kids. With Stanford, USC and UCLA you also have national powerhouses that local kids can choose.  But, as Pitt found out recently Midwest and East Coast schools that can create a Cali Pipleline can pay huge dividends for a program.

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CALIFORNIA Class of 2026 Recruiting Prospect Notes

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Audrey Flanagan, OH, SCVC

There is a 3-way race for the top spot on California’s prospect rankings, between three very good Outside Hitters. First is SCVC’s Flanagan. Flanagan is ranked the highest on VBAdrenaline’s Power 30 at 12. She is sound fundamentally and her ability as a blocker separates her from others. She was very impressive at TC NIT and had plenty of D1 attention there with a giant gathering of college coaches watching her games. In her high school season, she finished with 450+ kills and received serve over 400 times. She can play all positions which makes her extremely exciting. She’s easily the highest ranking SCVC player in recent history. Interest will be high for Flanagan and she will have her options locally and nationally from multiple Top 15 programs.

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Finley Krystkowiak, OH, WAVE

Next on the VBAdrenaline’s Power 30 is Finley Krystkowiak, a 6’3 Outside, who is ranked #23 on our list. She drew a lot of attention and had a fantastic performance at the NTDP and TC NIT. She looked fantastic against tough competition in Kansas City. Krystkowiak has a definitive case for #1 in Cali, just based on how hard she can hit, but her jumping ability also makes her fun to watch. She finished with 480+ kills this season at high school ball along with 50 aces in 100 sets. She will be a beast at the next level and is another one that has a legit chance to land at a top 10 team. The physicality of Finley is something not seen in most 2026s from Cali.  She will be sought after by most of the Big 10 to go along with many other Top 25s and of course regional schools. 

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Layli Ostovar, OH, Miz Long Beach

The last of the trio goes to Ostovar, she is ranked #30 on our Power 30, but also has a legitimate case to be #1 in-state. However, she will have to make a decision between beach or indoor come June. Ostovar is a powerful hitter, and despite being 5’11, which is a little undersized, she has incredible court vision and can find the floor often. Ostovar finished with 347 kills in her high school season for Mater Dei, and if her talent was enough, she was named MaxPreps Sophomore of the Year and a MaxPreps First Team All-American, she is a star and will probably be getting looks from the best of the best. Long Beach has had a long history of top players attending national powerhouses and the program is nationally recognized so look for Ostovar to gain big school attention for both indoor and beach.. 

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Ava McBride, S, OH, Actyve Volleyball Club

McBride is in the conversation for best Setter in the state, and despite playing on a smaller club team, she is a beast. McBride has a chance to be a top 10 setter in the class and that is huge for recruiting. McBride is 6’1 and has smooth/accurate jump sets. Ava also shows diversity and skill at multiple positions, excelling as an OH for her high school program.  She finished with over 400 kills last season. McBride will go D1, however, being that there isn’t any Actyve players to track in recent memory, it’s hard to use that. Top ranked Cali setters  have usually stayed in-state, we will see if that remains the case. 

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Reese Stringer, S, Miz Long Beach

Stringer, who leads the Long Beach Rockstar team, is the most recognizable setter in the class. She plays at Mira Costa (with Flanagan) and is the 16s setter for the most recognizable club in the state. 

Stringer makes it look effortless on the court and is able to place balls in perfect position for her teammates. Reese plays high school ball at Mira Costa which is loaded with D1 talent so she may not get the Fall stats of others.  But, her club exposure and her talent have shown this Spring and look for her to receive multiple Power 5 offers, along with many from the region. 

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Addison Coady, MB, Miz Long Beach

Sticking with Mizuno Long Beach, we move to the top MB in the state, Addison Coady. Coady is a 3x attendee of the UA Next Camp and plays for the top school in the state of California in Mater Dei and had 50 blocks in 55 sets last year for the Monarchs. Coady ranks as the top MB in Cali and that has meant P5 offers recently, as the 2024 and 2025 top MB’s landed at Michigan and Louisville respectively. 

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Presley Thompson, L/DS, WAVE

Thompson is currently ranked as the top Libero in the state. She is 5’5 and digs for WAVE and La Costa Canyon. Thompson finished with almost 300 digs last year for La Costa Canyon in only 73 sets while also averaging an ace every two sets and actually nearly hitting 100 kills. She’s got some of the best communication of anyone in the class and is always providing the energy her WAVE team needs. Thompson has a chance to be a top 100 prospect as a Libero and I wouldn’t be surprised if she lands at a big D1 school considering Maya Evens, a WAVE Libero who was the top L/DS in 2025, landed at Notre Dame. 

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Soraya Dennis, S, WAVE

Moving to the girl Thompson passes it too, Soraya Dennis is among the elite setters in this year’s class. Dennis, who is a UA Next and is makes a case for #1 in the state. She’s fast and has an incredible ability to get the ball exactly where it needs to be. Soraya has great chemistry with Finley Krystkowiak and that has been a lethal combo this club season. 

Dennis is a beast, and in a class where there are four really good setters, she might be the best of them all and has a real chance to land at a solid D1 school, in 2024, the top WAVE setter, Amanda Saeger, went to DePaul in the Big East.

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Milly McGee, S, SCVC

McGee is being talked about a lot. She’s getting a lot of college attention, and that is mainly due to her 6 '1 frame, but also because of her unique jump set, which gets Middle Blockers to jump early. . McGee was Stringer’s teammate at Mira Costa last year, and neither played a lot, but McGee appeared in more sets. She also gets to set Audrey Flanagan at both club and high school level. McGee’s passion for the game is easy to see and she will be another Setter who will get D1 offers (in state and outside) right away in her process. 

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Abby Zimmerman, RS, SCVC

Finally we have the top RS in California, Abby Zimmerman. Zimmerman impressed a lot of people in her Houston Skyline matchup at the TC NIT. She was very clutch all game in what led to a crucial win for SCVC. Zimmerman had two games in a row in the high school season where she had 22 kills and many more over 15. She is a stud and the top right sides in each class have had an incredible amount of success. In 2025, the top RS went to Oregon State, in 2024: Duke, and in 2023: Oregon. If you are the top right side, the trends are great, so I expect Zimmerman to go to a big time D1 school.

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State of the State

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California is a state that produces 30+ D1 commits a year, they also have many D1 programs that need and want local players to fill their rosters.  With the success that Pitt has taking two All-Americans out of the state you know other top programs are going to be trying to build solid connections in California.  With many of these prospects it may simply come down to how far they want to travel away for school.  But, make no mistake there will be several interesting battles for the these high end recruits and other Cali schools trying to battle Stanford (in-state powerhouse) and national powerhouses to keep prospects home

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