In his 29 seasons as head coach of the UC Santa Barbara men's volleyball team, Ken Preston has created one of the most successful athletic programs at UCSB. The Gauchos have made 21 postseason appearances during Preston's tenure. He enters his 30th season at UCSB with an overall record of 499-367.
During its 37-year history, the UCSB men's volleyball program has posted 28 seasons with a winning percentage of .500 or better, 20 of those coming during Preston's tenure. The Gauchos have advanced to the NCAA Final Four three times, most recently in 1988.

Preston started off his UCSB career in 1979 and recorded an impressive 11 consecutive winning seasons before suffering back-to-back losing seasons in 1990 and 1991, the first consecutive losing marks in school history. Since then, Preston's squads have finished below .500 just six times.

Winning has always been second nature at UCSB and Preston has produced eight 20-win seasons to prove it. He became the first coach of the Gaucho program to win over 200 matches back in 1987. He collected his 400th win in 2000 with a five-game victory over UC Irvine and will be looking for his 500th in 2007.
Preston's most enjoyable season had to be 1988, a year that marked the end of his first decade at UCSB. He guided the Gauchos to their first Final Four appearance in 13 years. UCSB went up two games to none, but lost the national championship in five games to USC.

Despite the loss, Preston's 1988 squad accomplished what no other Gaucho team had been able to do - beat UCLA in the postseason. UCSB swept UCLA in the first round of the Western Regionals. Preston also led UCSB past the Bruins in both WIVA meetings that season, including a five-game win at Pauley Pavilion, which was another first. UCSB won its 400th match under Preston that season.

Preston has also produced 25 All-Americans and 45 All-MPSF selections during his tenure at UCSB.
Before taking over at UCSB, Preston served as head coach for Cal Poly in San Luis Obispo and Wright State in Dayton, Ohio. He was also the interim head coach for the Westmont College women's volleyball team for two years. He guided the Warriors to a fifth place finish at the NAIA National Tournament in 1990. Westmont posted a 50-18 mark during Preston's reign.

In addition to his collegiate coaching experience, Preston has spent time coaching at the international level. Most recently, Preston served as the Team Leader for the United States National Team at the World University Games held in Turkey the summer of 2005. In the summer of 2000, Preston was an assistant on the U.S. Olympic Team in Sydney, Australia. He skippered the U.S. team at the 1985 World University Games in Kobe, Japan, and served as an assistant coach with the U.S. National Team when it toured Brazil in 1984. The previous year, Preston was the assistant coach at the Pan American Games in Caracas, Venezuela, and in 1982 he was an assistant at the World Championships in Argentina. He also held assistant posts for the U.S. squad at the 1979 World University Games in Mexico City and at the 1978 World Championships in Italy.

Preston is a graduate of nearby San Marcos High School, where he was a standout offensive guard for the infamous 1965 Royals. He earned his BA from UCSB and his MA at Cal Poly.
Preston and his wife, Beth, reside in Santa Barbara with their three daughters.

Last Updated December 4, 2006