Ruben Volta will enter his 18th season as head coach in 2025. A three-time Big Sky Conference Coach of the Year (2023, 2017, 2015), Volta has guided the program to a combined 186-121 overall record and a 114-49 mark in league play over the last 10 seasons.
He recently received a contract extension that will take him through the 2027 season.
Volta guided the Hornets to a historic 2024 season that included the team winning the Big Sky Conference Tournament championship and advancing to the NCAA Tournament. The team finished with a 21-12 overall record, 11-5 in league play, and Sacramento State went 3-0 at the Big Sky Tournament in front of large home crowds throughout the entire event. It was the team’s second straight postseason appearance, which includes an NIVC berth in 2023.
The Hornets never lost more than two matches in a row, went 12-2 at home and saw three players named to the all-Big Sky Tournament team (MVP Bridgette Smith, Caitlin Volkmann, Reese Ampi). In addition, both Smith and Volkmann were named first team all-Big Sky, including Smith receiving first team honors for the fourth straight season.
In 2023, Sacramento State won its first Big Sky regular season championship since 2017 while going 22-12 overall, 13-3 in league play, and 13-5 at home. The 22 wins were the most in six years, the team never lost more than two straight matches, and Volta was named the Big Sky’s Coach of the Year for the third time in nine seasons. The Hornets qualified for the NIVC for the fifth time in program history, and won a match at the postseason tournament (sweep of UNLV) for the first time since 1995.
Five players were named all-conference (most since 2016), and three were named to the first team - Smith, Tiyanane Kamba-Griffin and Kalani Hayes. In fact, Smith was named honorable mention All-America and Big Sky MVP. She became just the second Hornet during the Div. I era (1991-pres.) to receive All-America accolades.
The Hornets have finished no worse than 10-6 in conference each of the last five seasons, and at least three Hornets have been named all-conference each of those years. In fact, the Hornets have not lost more than two matches in a row since the 2022 season.
Since 2015, Sacramento State is 72-12 (.857 winning percentage) at home against Big Sky opposition. Also, during that 10-year stretch, the team won a Big Sky Tournament crown (2024), two Big Sky regular season titles (2023, 2017), back-to-back Big Sky South Division championships (2017, 2016), and has garnered at least three all-conference selections each of those seasons. In fact, the Hornets haven’t finished below .500 in league play 10 straight years, and have finished fifth or higher in the standings every season.
In 2017, the team went 26-10 overall and 15-1 in the Big Sky, winning the league’s regular season title for the first time since 2007. The team had three winning streaks of at least six games long, including a 10-gamer from Sept. 21-Oct. 21. In addition, Sacramento State put together streaks of 18 straight Big Sky regular season victories, and 26 straight home wins over league foes. The Hornets’ 15-1 conference record tied for the program’s best mark since joining the league in 1996, and Volta was named Big Sky Coach of the Year for the second time in three years.
By virtue of winning the league’s 2017 Big Sky regular season championship, Sacramento State hosted the conference tournament, winning their first two matches before falling in five sets in the championship match. Still, the Hornets made their first national postseason appearance since 2007 when the team qualified for the National Invitational Volleyball Championship (NIVC).
The 2016 team won the program’s first Big Sky South Division title and earned the No. 2 seed at the Big Sky Tournament after posting a 20-12 overall record and 13-3 league mark.
Volta was named the Big Sky Coach of the Year after leading the 2015 Hornet squad to a 26-7 overall record and a 12-4 mark in league. Despite Sacramento State being picked 10th out of 12 teams in the Big Sky’s preseason coaches poll, the Hornets finished the regular season with the third best conference record. Moreover, Sacramento State made an 18-win improvement over the 2014 season with nearly the same roster. The 18-win improvement was the best mark in the nation among the NCAA’s 329 Div. I volleyball programs.
Volta was also instrumental in Sacramento State adding beach volleyball to its roster of sports in the spring of 2013. He currently serves as the co-head coach of the beach squad.
Volta has been a member of the Sacramento State indoor coaching staff a combined 25 years, including one year as the associate head coach (2007), five years as an assistant (2002-06), and two seasons as a volunteer assistant (2000-01).
During Volta’s 25-year tenure with the program, Sacramento State has combined for a 477-312 overall record (.605 winning percentage), a 266-135 mark (.663) in the Big Sky, eight Big Sky Tournament championships, seven regular season conference titles, eight NCAA Tournament appearances, and two trips to the NIVC.
Also, during that 25-year span, Sacramento State players have combined for 130 all-academic selections, 85 all-conference awards (including 30 first team selections), one All-American, five MVPs and five all-Pacific Region selections.
In addition, over the last 22 years, and every season of Volta’s head coaching tenure, the Hornets have had at least three Big Sky all-academic selections. That includes eight during the 2024 season.
Volta’s players graduate as well. Of the 51 student-athletes that have expired their eligibility during Volta’s head coaching tenure, 50 have graduated.
A graduate of Sacramento State in 1993 with a degree in physical education, Volta played four years for the Hornet men’s club team (1991-93, 1995). He starred for the 1995 squad that went undefeated and won the National Club Championship. That season, Volta earned All-America honors as a setter and was named all-tourney at the Big 10 Tournament. He was inducted into the Sacramento State Men’s Volleyball Hall of Fame in 2009.
In 1995, he opened the High Voltage volleyball facility in Sacramento, and began running a juniors club. In 1997, the club operated 18 juniors teams of different age groups.
In the seven years of High Voltage’s existence, the team qualified for the junior nationals (18-open division) five times, including an 11th-place finish in 1996. The junior nationals include the top 32 teams in the country.
He also spent the 2001 season coaching the 18-under Davis club team and spent time as an assistant coach at Rio Americano High School for one season (1999) where he helped guide the Raiders to the Sac-Joaquin Section championship. Prior to that, Volta spent two seasons as the varsity head coach at Country Day High School (1998-99) where the team finished third in the section championships. He started his coaching career at Grant High School in 1992, spending two years as the varsity head coach for the boys and girls teams.
Volta, who resides in Sacramento, also taught physical education at Sacramento’s St. Philomenes School from 1999-2002.
