For the past five years the Big West Conference women’s volleyball preseason poll has had all the drama of a North Korean election.

Each season since the University of Hawaii’s return to the Big West has resulted in the Rainbow Wahine being pretty much the automatic conference coaches’ preseason pick to win the league.

More years than not the Rainbow Wahine have been a unanimous selection.

But early balloting for the 2017 poll — which is scheduled to be released today — suggests UH is no longer assured the role of favorite and perceptions are changing.

For the first time since 1995 (the year before UH began a 16-year stay in the Western Athletic Conference, where it was also regularly the top pick), somebody could supplant the Rainbow Wahine as the team to beat.

The top candidate is Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, which would be a remarkable turn of events in and of itself.

UH has pretty much owned the Mustangs for the length of Cal Poly’s Division I history, going 39-4. And last year, when Cal Poly finished third, wasn’t all that close either, with the Rainbow Wahine winning six of the seven games played.

The last time Cal Poly finished in the national rankings was a decade ago.

But as we will often be reminded in this season of change, it is a new-look Big West in several respects.

Gone are two American Volleyball Coaches Association Hall of Fame coaches, David Shoji and Long Beach State’s Brian Gimmillaro. Moving on also for UH is Nikki Taylor, two-time Big West Player of the Year, and middle Annie Mitchem.

UH experiences turnover all the time, of course, and has seemed to merely reload while other teams have had the chore of rebuilding.

But this year, emerging from the fog of California’s central coast — where meteorologists and pundits give the months nicknames like ‘May Gray” “No Sky July” and “Fogust” — come the Mustangs.

But after 19-8 (11-5) and 18-9 (11-5) seasons, the Mustangs hit what many believe will be their payoff year under sixth-year head coach Sam Crosson. Back are a pair of two-time All-Big West seniors, setter Taylor Nelson and outside hitter Raeann Griesen, plus honorable mention outside hitter Adlee Van Winden.

The shelves are not exactly empty in Manoa, either, with the return of all-conference picks setter Norene Iosia, libero Savanah Kahakai and middle Emily Maglio.

But what has the potential to put the Mustangs over the top is the transfer of UCLA outside hitter/opposite Torrey Van Winden. Adlee’s 6-foot, 3-inch “little” sister, Torrey was a Pac-12 All-Freshman team pick. Her eligibility to compete this year has yet to be officially announced by Cal Poly, which has not included her on the 2017 roster on its website.

In picking UH as preseason favorites, the Big West coaches have, with rare exception, been on target. Just once in the past five seasons (2014) have the Rainbow Wahine failed to win at least a share of first place in the conference. They were second that year.

But, then, if today’s poll passes over the Rainbow Wahine, Ah Mow-Santos can provide a pertinent history lesson on the subject.

The last time Big West coaches didn’t deem UH worthy of the top preseason pick was 1995, when Pacific got the nod.

A year in which it turned out Ah Mow-Santos helped lead the Rainbow Wahine past UOP twice and on to an 18-0 conference record and championship.

Reach Ferd Lewis at flewis@staradvertiser.com or 529-4820.