COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – The defending conference champions University of Colorado Colorado Springs volleyball team will enter the 2026 season as the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference preseason favorite, as the league announced its 2026 Preseason Coaches' Poll and Preseaon Teams on Tuesday.
Individually, head coach
Tara Hittle returns for her fifth season after becoming the first coach in program history to earn RMAC Coach of the Year honors. Four Mountain Lions were selected to the 2026 Preseason All-RMAC Team, the most of any conference institution:
Nicole Himebauch,
Sydney Hyde,
Payton Tompkins and
Sydnee Walker.
The RMAC Volleyball Preseason Coaches' Poll is voted on by the league's 15 head volleyball coaches. Coaches are not allowed to vote for their own team. RMAC's preseason teams are determined by placing returning players in order of head coaches' voting from the league's 2025 All-RMAC Teams.
UCCS received 187 points, including eight first-place votes, four second-place votes and one third-place vote, claiming the top spot in the 15-team conference poll. Colorado Mesa University follows in second with 169 points, while Colorado School of Mines and MSU Denver are tied for third with 165 points.
The preseason recognition comes after the Mountain Lions put together the most successful season in program history in 2025. UCCS finished the 2025 campaign with a 26-4 overall record and a 13-1 mark in RMAC play, sharing the conference regular-season championship with MSU Denver. The title marked the first RMAC regular-season championship in program history. The Mountain Lions also earned the No. 2 seed in the RMAC Tournament, advanced to the conference championship match and received the No. 2 seed in the NCAA Division II South Central Regional.
Nicole Himebauch earned All-RMAC First Team and D2CCA All-South Central Region Second Team honors following the 2025 season. She was also named RMAC Defensive Player of the Week twice, while starting all 30 matches and playing in 109 sets, finishing second on the team with 234 kills and 2.15 kills per set. She recorded a team-high 107 blocks, including 14 solo blocks, and led UCCS with 46 service aces.
Sydney Hyde was named All-RMAC Second Team following her freshman season. She started all 30 matches and played in 109 sets, recording 229 kills and 2.10 kills per set. Hyde finished second on the team with 93 total blocks, including 18 solo blocks, and recorded a .305 hitting percentage. Her 93 blocks ranked among the top totals on the UCCS roster during the Mountain Lions' 2025 season.
Payton Tompkins earned AVCA All-America Honorable Mention, AVCA All-South Central Region First Team and All-RMAC First Team honors in 2025. She was also named Academic All-RMAC First Team and CSC Academic All-District, and received RMAC Offensive Player of the Week recognition on Oct. 27. Tompkins led UCCS with 371 kills and averaged 3.50 kills per set, while recording 251 digs, 26 service aces and 43 total blocks. She also was selected to the UCCS Mountain Lion Classic and Hawaii Challenge All-Tournament Teams.
Sydnee Walker earned All-RMAC Honorable Mention and RMAC All-Academic Honor Roll recognition in 2025 and was named the MVP of the UCCS Mountain Lion Classic All-Tournament Team. She started 24 matches and played in 106 sets, recording 215 kills, 242 digs, 29 assists, 17 service aces and 36 total blocks. Walker averaged 2.03 kills and 2.28 digs per set during the season.
The Mountain Lions will kick off the season at the Colorado School of Mines Orediggers Classic Aug. 27-29. UCCS' first match of the season will take place on Thursday, Aug. 27 at 7 p.m. against Flager College inside CSM Lockridge Arena.
2026 RMAC Volleyball Preseason Coaches' Poll
| Rank |
Team |
Points |
| 1 |
UCCS |
187 |
| 2 |
Colorado Mesa |
169 |
| T-3 |
Colorado School of Mines |
165 |
| T-3 |
MSU Denver |
165 |
| 5 |
CSU Pueblo |
155 |
| 6 |
Colorado Christian |
125 |
| 7 |
Fort Lewis |
112 |
| 8 |
South Dakota Mines |
107 |
| 9 |
Westminster |
83 |
| 10 |
Regis |
67 |
| 11 |
Adams State |
62 |
| 12 |
New Mexico Highlands |
52 |
| 13 |
Western Colorado |
44 |
| 14 |
Black Hills State |
43 |
| 15 |
Chadron State |
38 |
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As a member of the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference, the University of Colorado Colorado Springs competes in 14 varsity sports in NCAA Division II intercollegiate athletics.
