Only two programs in beach volleyball history have earned NCAA titles: USC and UCLA. And last season, on the Gulf Shores of Alabama, the two sworn enemies squared off for the NCAA crown.

Although the Trojans had dropped their last three consecutive dual matches to the Bruins, they snapped their losing streak when it mattered most. Tied at two matches apiece, the championship dual came down to the wire; then-seniors Audrey and Nicole Nourse secured a three-set thriller to hand USC its third consecutive NCAA championship.

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Since the inception of NCAA beach volleyball in 2016, USC has won five of the seven championships, and its most recent three-peat made beach volleyball the only USC women’s team to ever win three straight NCAA titles.

Heading into the 2024 season, beach volleyball clearly has an extraordinary legacy of domination to defend, and to nobody’s surprise, the team appears to be in great shape.

In the American Volleyball Coaches Association Preseason Poll, USC is ranked No. 1 almost unanimously — it received 22 of 23 first-place votes and No. 2 UCLA received one first-place vote.

Confidence in the Trojans’ ability to perform this season is rooted, in part, in the wealth of enthusiasm and experience of Head Coach Dain Blanton and the rest of the USC coaching staff. Together, they’ve instilled a seemingly indomitable winning culture in the USC program.

Entering his fifth season at USC, Blanton boasts a 105-15 career coaching record, and last season, assistant coach Gustavo Rocha received the AVCA National Assistant Coach of the Year award. Emily Hansen will return as assistant coach; she served as a volunteer assistant following her USC playing career.

Beyond the coaching staff, the Trojans’ roster features a slew of remarkable returners.

2023 Pac-12 Player of the Year senior Megan Kraft and senior Delaynie Maple started last season with a 10-match win streak and finished with an overall record of 31-5 as a pair. Their command of the sand earned them the Pac-12 Pair of the Year, and each of them were named AVCA All-Americans.

In hopes of donning a fourth ring, the Nourses have opted to play for a fifth year. The twins are currently tied as the second-winningest duo in USC history with 92 wins.

The Trojans’ latest title run was headlined by veteran players such as then-graduates Madison “Maddog” Shields, Ashlyn Rasnick-Pope and Jenna Johnson — with Johnson and Rasnick-Pope being selected for the NCAA All-Tournament team. The graduates established a lasting spirit on the program, which is expected to be imparted on the team’s newcomers: USC has welcomed four transfers and five freshmen to maintain a balance of experience and fresh talent.

Graduates Grace Seits from LSU, Maddi Kriz from Stanford and Ainsley Radell from UC Berkeley have collected 215 career match wins as a collective. Graduate Emily Fitzner brings a wealth of wisdom as she played four seasons of indoor volleyball at Indiana and served as the Hoosiers’ team captain before transferring to USC to play both indoor and beach volleyball.

As for the youngbloods, Blanton has brought in a quintet of top-rated players from across the country.

Madison Goellner, Grace Hong and Ashley Pater were named AVCA Junior All-Americans in the fall. Moreover, Kaylee Young and Pater have acquired international experience: Young was a two-time member of the USA Volleyball Beach U17 national team, and Pater was the 2022 Amateur Athletic Union Junior Olympics National Champion and runner-up at the 2022 U19 World Championship with Team USA.

With the addition of four out-of-state players, USC has 11 players from outside of California on its entire roster — the most in program history. But despite expanding its talent search, USC has made strides to salvage its regional ties.

This will be the Trojans’ final season in the Pac-12 before beach volleyball moves to the newly formed Mountain Pacific Sports Federation rather than the Big Ten. In the newly formed league, they’ll be joined by other West Coast schools such as Stanford, Cal, UCLA, Washington, Oregon and Grand Canyon University.

This year, USC will still need all the firepower it can garner, as it’s scheduled to play at least 16 duals against teams currently ranked within the top 10 over the course of the season. Its first slate of top-10 matchups will come Feb. 22 at the Outrigger Duke Kahanamoku Beach Classic in Honolulu, Hawai‘i — the first time USC will play in Hawai‘i since 2018. The Trojans’ season-opening dual will be a national title rematch against their crosstown rival UCLA. Then, they’re slated to play No. 7 Stanford, No. 5 Loyola Marymount University and the host, No. 9 University of Hawai‘i at Manoa.