COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (Aug 13, 2018) – USA Volleyball has announced the 17 players that make up the 2018 Men’s Junior National Training Team.
Twelve players will be selected from the 17 to compete at the NORCECA Men’s U21 Continental Championship on Aug. 27-Sept. 2 in Havana, Cuba.
A change in dates for the U21 Championships meant some changes in the Training Team’s roster.
“The reality is that over the past couple years, the USAV High Performance pipeline has increased the level of volleyball,” U.S. Head Coach Jonah Carson said. “There was still a lot of depth and quality to choose from.”
The Training Team will travel to Chicago on Aug. 15 to practice at Adversity Volleyball Club in Vernon Hills, Ill. The team will be named on Aug. 24 and the team will travel to Cuba on Aug. 25. Carson will be assisted by Kris Berzins and Sam Shweisky. Olympian Aldis Berzins will serve as head of delegation.
“The players in the gym will determine the style and system of play,” Carson said. “USAV has been successful running a precise system, but there is flexibility within the system.
“We’ve got some good size, especially in the middle and on the right side. And we have returning players who have been in the pipeline and who have had success internationally.”
Four players on the roster played on the 2017 Boys’ Youth National Team that competed at the FIVB U19 World Championship: opposite Jaylen Jasper, outside hitter Devin Joslyn and middle blockers Kyler Presho and Sam Lewis.
Setters on the training team are Blake Crisp, Brendin Chandler and Joe Kelly. The other outside hitters are Jacob Steele, Kevin Lamp, John Patrick Reilly and Spencer Olivier.
The other middle blockers are James Martin and Joe Kenzinger.
The other opposites are Luke Denton and Merrick McHenry. The liberos are Garland Peed and Zach Hendrickson.
U.S. Men’s Junior National Training Team Roster
Name (Position, Height, Hometown, College)
Brendin Chandler (S, 6-5, Agoura Hills, Calif., Signed to Pepperdine)
Blake Crisp (S, 6-3, Westlake Village, Calif., Signed to UC San Diego)
Luke Denton (Opp, 6-6, Mesa, Ariz., Signed to Loyola Chicago)
Zach Hendrickson (L, 6-0, Louisville, Ky., BYU)
Jaylen Jasper (Opp, 6-8, Annapolis, Md., Stanford)
Devin Joslyn (OH, 6-6, Angola, N.Y., Loyola Chicago)
Joe Kelly (S, 6-2, El Segundo, Calif., Princeton)
Joe Kenzinger (MB, 6-6, Chicago, Ill., Lewis)
Kevin Lamp (OH, 6-4, Lake Bluff, Ill., Committed to Stanford)
Sam Lewis (MB, 6-10, Long Beach, Calif., USC)
James Martin (MB, 6-8, Fort Lauderdale, Fla., Signed to Pepperdine)
Merrick McHenry (Opp, 6-6, Colleyville, Texas, Committed to UCLA)
Spencer Olivier (OH, 6-6, Tustin, Calif., Long Beach State)
Garland Peed V (L, 6-2, San Diego, Calif., UCLA)
Kyler Presho (MB, 6-8, San Clemente, Calif., Stanford)
J.P. Reilly (OH, 6-5, Manhattan Beach, Calif., Stanford)
Jacob Steele (OH, 6-8, Trabuco Canyon, Calif., Signed to Pepperdine)
Head Coach: Jonah Carson (USAV High Performance and Mountain View Volleyball Club)
Assistant Coach: Kris Berzins (USAV High Performance and D1 Volleyball Club)
Assistant Coach: Sam Shweisky (Princeton University men’s volleyball_
Head of Delegation: Aldis Berzins (Stevenson University Men’s Volleyball)
Team Doctor: Denise Wunderler