Zach Rama (20) Celebrates
Photo by: VICTOR ISAAC CALVO LIZARDO
MVB: Summer Updates on Bruins on U.S. Teams
July 27, 2023 | Men's Volleyball
U.S. Men's Volleyball Team Brings Home Silver In VNL
The U.S. Men's National Team, coached by UCLA's John Speraw and featuring Bruins Garrett Muagututia and Micah Ma'a, won the silver medal at the Volleyball Nations League for the second straight year last weekend as it fell to host Poland 3-1 (25-23, 24-26, 25-18, 25-18) in Gdansk. Setter Micah Christenson and middle blocker David Smith were named to the VNL Dream Team.
Poland led the U.S. Men in kills (59-51), aces (7-3) and held the edge in blocks (9-8). Poland scored 24 points on U.S. errors.Outside hitter T.J. DeFalco led the U.S. with 14 points on 13 kills and one ace. Muagututia, an outside hitter, and Ma'a, a setter, both played as substitutes in the third set. Muagututia scored with a kill and Ma'a was credited with a block.
Muagututia made his debut with the U.S. Men's National Team in 2011 at the Pan American Cup. He has played professionally in Spain, Finland, Italy, Turkey, Poland, China, Portugal and Greece. In 2019, Muagututia was a member of the U.S. team which captured the bronze medal at the FIVB World Cup, brought home the silver medal at the FIVB Nation's League and helped the U.S. earn a trip to Tokyo at the FIVB Men's Volleyball Qualification Tournament. He was selected to the 12-man team that competed for the U.S. at the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020.
At UCLA, Muagututia earned second-team All-America honors in multiple seasons (2010, 2008). He led the Bruins in kills as a senior (446) and finished his career with 71 double-digit kill matches, 19 double-doubles and 99 aces. Muagututia ended his Bruin playing days as the rally scoring era school leader in block solos (44) for a career and in second-place on the all-time kills list (1,473).
Ma'a played at UCLA from 2016-19 and has been a member of the U.S. Men's National Team since 2018. He has played professionally in France since 2019. Ma'a was a 2018 and 2019 first-team AVCA All-America and first-team All-MPSF selection while setting the Bruins to two of the highest attack percentages in the country each season. He established a school record for most aces in a season with 67 in 2019 when he ranked third nationally with a 0.64 aces per set average and finished up his UCLA career with a school-record total of 208 aces.
Speraw, who led the UCLA men's volleyball team to the 2023 NCAA National Championship, has been the U.S. Men's head coach since 2013 and helped them to the bronze medal at the 2016 Olympic Games. His second assistant coaches include Mike Wall and current Bruin assistant Morteza Shiari.
U.S. Men's National Team Roster for VNL Final Round
No. Player (Position, Height, Hometown, College, USAV Region)
1 Matt Anderson (Opp, 6-10, West Seneca, N.Y., Penn State, Western Empire)
2 Aaron Russell (OH, 6-9, Ellicott City, Md., Penn State, Chesapeake)
4 Jeff Jendryk (MB, 6-10, Wheaton, Ill., Loyola Univ. Chicago, Great Lakes)
8 T.J. DeFalco (OH, 6-5, Huntington Beach, Calif., Long Beach State Univ., Southern California)
9 Jake Hanes (OPP, 6-10, Orland Park, Ill., Ohio State Univ., Great Lakes)
10 Kyle Dagostino (L, 5-9, Tampa, Florida, Stanford Univ., Florida)
11 Micah Christenson (S, 6-5, Honolulu, Hawaii, Univ. of Southern California, Hawaii)
12 Max Holt (MB, 6-10, Cincinnati, Ohio, Penn State, Ohio Valley)
14 Micah Ma'a (S, 6-3, Kaneohe, Hawaii, UCLA, Aloha)
17 Thomas Jaeschke (OH, 6-6, Wheaton, Ill., Loyola Univ. Chicago, Great Lakes)
18 Garrett Muagututia (OH, 6-5, Oceanside, Calif., UCLA, Southern California)
19 Taylor Averill (MB, 6-7, San Jose, Calif., Univ. of Hawaii, Northern California)
20 David Smith (MB, 6-7, Saugus, Calif., Univ. of California Irvine, Southern California)
22 Erik Shoji (L, 6-0, Honolulu, Hawaii, Stanford Univ., Hawaii)
The U.S. Men's U21 National Team, which included UCLA's Zach Rama and Andrew Rowan, defeated Mexico, 3-0 (25-15, 25-21, 25-18) in the 13th-place match to conclude play at the U21 World Championship in Manama, Bahrain. The win avenged a four-set loss to Mexico in the second round of pool play. The U.S. finished with a 40-30 advantage in kills, 12-2 in blocks, and 6-0 in service aces. Rama contributed eight points on five kills (.333 efficiency percentage), a block, and two aces. He also finished with five successful receptions and five digs.
U.S. Men's U21 Roster for the 2023 FIVB World Championship
No. Name (Position, Height, Birth year, Hometown, College, USAV Region)
1 Ryan Merk (L, 6-0, 2003, Chicago, Ill., Penn State, Great Lakes)
5 Dillon Klein (OH, 6-4, 2003, Pacific Palisades, Calif., Univ. of Southern California, Southern California)
6 Island Doty (S, 6-5, 2003, Colorado Springs, Colo., Long Beach State, Rocky Mountain)
12 Andrew Rowan (S, 6-7, 2003, Trabuco Canyon, Calif., UCLA, Southern California)
13 Shane Wetzel (Opp, 6-7, 2004, Wekiwa Springs, Fla., Ohio State, Florida)
16 Nyherowo Omene (MB, 6-8, 2003, South Holland, Ill., Princeton, Great Lakes)
17 Trent Moser (OH, 6-8, 2003, Gilbert, Ariz., BYU, Arizona)
20 Zach Rama (OH, 6-8, 2004, Phoenix, Ariz., UCLA, Arizona)
22 Owen Rose (MB, 6-8, 2003, Long Island, N.Y., Penn State, Garden Empire)
21 Wesley Smith (MB, 6-11, 2004, Encinitas, Calif., Univ. of Southern California, Southern California)
23 Alex Rottman (OH, 6-7, 2004, Santa Barbara, Calif., Stanford, Southern California)
25 Theo Snoey (OH, 6-8, 2004, Berkeley, Calif., Stanford, Northern California)
Head Coach: Andy Read (Long Beach State)
Assistant Coaches: Chris Seiffert (Concordia-Irvine); Rory Prager (Univ. of Southern California)
U.S. Men's U21 Results at the 2023 FIVB World Championship
July 7 Argentina def. USA, 3-0 (25-22, 25-19, 25-23) --- Rama 7 kills, 1 block; Rowan 3 attack pts. and 1 ace
July 8 Belgium def. USA, 3-1 (25-23, 16-25, 25-22, 25-20) --- Rama 13 kills, 1 ace; Rowan 3 attack pts. and 1 ace
July 9 Czechia def. USA, 3-1 (25-19, 23-25, 25-23, 25-22) --- Rama 18 kills, 1 block, 1 ace; Rowan 2 attack pts. and 1 ace
July 11 Egypt def. USA, 3-1 (25-20, 25-20, 22-25, 25-20) --- no stats for UCLA players
July 12 Czechia def. USA, 3-0 (25-19, 25-16, 25-17) --- Rama 5 kills; Rowan 1 block
July 13 Mexico def. USA, 3-0 (25-18, 26-24, 20-25, 25-22) --- Rama 13 kills, 2 blocks
July 15 Consolation playoffs USA def. Bahrain, 3-1 (25-18, 25-22, 22-25, 25-21) --- Rama 12 kills, 1 block, 3 aces
July 16 13th place match USA def. Mexico, 3-0 (25-15, 25-21, 25-18) --- Rama 5 kills, 1 block, 2 aces
The U.S. Men's National Team, coached by UCLA's John Speraw and featuring Bruins Garrett Muagututia and Micah Ma'a, won the silver medal at the Volleyball Nations League for the second straight year last weekend as it fell to host Poland 3-1 (25-23, 24-26, 25-18, 25-18) in Gdansk. Setter Micah Christenson and middle blocker David Smith were named to the VNL Dream Team.
Poland led the U.S. Men in kills (59-51), aces (7-3) and held the edge in blocks (9-8). Poland scored 24 points on U.S. errors.Outside hitter T.J. DeFalco led the U.S. with 14 points on 13 kills and one ace. Muagututia, an outside hitter, and Ma'a, a setter, both played as substitutes in the third set. Muagututia scored with a kill and Ma'a was credited with a block.
Muagututia made his debut with the U.S. Men's National Team in 2011 at the Pan American Cup. He has played professionally in Spain, Finland, Italy, Turkey, Poland, China, Portugal and Greece. In 2019, Muagututia was a member of the U.S. team which captured the bronze medal at the FIVB World Cup, brought home the silver medal at the FIVB Nation's League and helped the U.S. earn a trip to Tokyo at the FIVB Men's Volleyball Qualification Tournament. He was selected to the 12-man team that competed for the U.S. at the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020.
At UCLA, Muagututia earned second-team All-America honors in multiple seasons (2010, 2008). He led the Bruins in kills as a senior (446) and finished his career with 71 double-digit kill matches, 19 double-doubles and 99 aces. Muagututia ended his Bruin playing days as the rally scoring era school leader in block solos (44) for a career and in second-place on the all-time kills list (1,473).
Ma'a played at UCLA from 2016-19 and has been a member of the U.S. Men's National Team since 2018. He has played professionally in France since 2019. Ma'a was a 2018 and 2019 first-team AVCA All-America and first-team All-MPSF selection while setting the Bruins to two of the highest attack percentages in the country each season. He established a school record for most aces in a season with 67 in 2019 when he ranked third nationally with a 0.64 aces per set average and finished up his UCLA career with a school-record total of 208 aces.
Speraw, who led the UCLA men's volleyball team to the 2023 NCAA National Championship, has been the U.S. Men's head coach since 2013 and helped them to the bronze medal at the 2016 Olympic Games. His second assistant coaches include Mike Wall and current Bruin assistant Morteza Shiari.
U.S. Men's National Team Roster for VNL Final Round
No. Player (Position, Height, Hometown, College, USAV Region)
1 Matt Anderson (Opp, 6-10, West Seneca, N.Y., Penn State, Western Empire)
2 Aaron Russell (OH, 6-9, Ellicott City, Md., Penn State, Chesapeake)
4 Jeff Jendryk (MB, 6-10, Wheaton, Ill., Loyola Univ. Chicago, Great Lakes)
8 T.J. DeFalco (OH, 6-5, Huntington Beach, Calif., Long Beach State Univ., Southern California)
9 Jake Hanes (OPP, 6-10, Orland Park, Ill., Ohio State Univ., Great Lakes)
10 Kyle Dagostino (L, 5-9, Tampa, Florida, Stanford Univ., Florida)
11 Micah Christenson (S, 6-5, Honolulu, Hawaii, Univ. of Southern California, Hawaii)
12 Max Holt (MB, 6-10, Cincinnati, Ohio, Penn State, Ohio Valley)
14 Micah Ma'a (S, 6-3, Kaneohe, Hawaii, UCLA, Aloha)
17 Thomas Jaeschke (OH, 6-6, Wheaton, Ill., Loyola Univ. Chicago, Great Lakes)
18 Garrett Muagututia (OH, 6-5, Oceanside, Calif., UCLA, Southern California)
19 Taylor Averill (MB, 6-7, San Jose, Calif., Univ. of Hawaii, Northern California)
20 David Smith (MB, 6-7, Saugus, Calif., Univ. of California Irvine, Southern California)
22 Erik Shoji (L, 6-0, Honolulu, Hawaii, Stanford Univ., Hawaii)
Final Round in Gdansk, Poland
Quarterfinal July 19
USA def France 3-2 (25-21, 25-18 17-25, 24-26, 15-9)
Semifinals July 22
Poland def Japan 3-1 (19-25, 28-26, 25-17, 25-21)
USA def Italy 3-0 (25-19, 25-18, 25-19)
Finals July 23
Bronze medal--- Japan def Italy 3-2 (25-18, 25-23, 17-25, 17-25, 15-9)
Gold medal--- Poland def USA 3-1 (25-23, 24-26, 25-18, 25-18)
U.S. Men's U21 National Team Comes Away with 13th Place at FIVB World ChampionshipsQuarterfinal July 19
USA def France 3-2 (25-21, 25-18 17-25, 24-26, 15-9)
Semifinals July 22
Poland def Japan 3-1 (19-25, 28-26, 25-17, 25-21)
USA def Italy 3-0 (25-19, 25-18, 25-19)
Finals July 23
Bronze medal--- Japan def Italy 3-2 (25-18, 25-23, 17-25, 17-25, 15-9)
Gold medal--- Poland def USA 3-1 (25-23, 24-26, 25-18, 25-18)
The U.S. Men's U21 National Team, which included UCLA's Zach Rama and Andrew Rowan, defeated Mexico, 3-0 (25-15, 25-21, 25-18) in the 13th-place match to conclude play at the U21 World Championship in Manama, Bahrain. The win avenged a four-set loss to Mexico in the second round of pool play. The U.S. finished with a 40-30 advantage in kills, 12-2 in blocks, and 6-0 in service aces. Rama contributed eight points on five kills (.333 efficiency percentage), a block, and two aces. He also finished with five successful receptions and five digs.
U.S. Men's U21 Roster for the 2023 FIVB World Championship
No. Name (Position, Height, Birth year, Hometown, College, USAV Region)
1 Ryan Merk (L, 6-0, 2003, Chicago, Ill., Penn State, Great Lakes)
5 Dillon Klein (OH, 6-4, 2003, Pacific Palisades, Calif., Univ. of Southern California, Southern California)
6 Island Doty (S, 6-5, 2003, Colorado Springs, Colo., Long Beach State, Rocky Mountain)
12 Andrew Rowan (S, 6-7, 2003, Trabuco Canyon, Calif., UCLA, Southern California)
13 Shane Wetzel (Opp, 6-7, 2004, Wekiwa Springs, Fla., Ohio State, Florida)
16 Nyherowo Omene (MB, 6-8, 2003, South Holland, Ill., Princeton, Great Lakes)
17 Trent Moser (OH, 6-8, 2003, Gilbert, Ariz., BYU, Arizona)
20 Zach Rama (OH, 6-8, 2004, Phoenix, Ariz., UCLA, Arizona)
22 Owen Rose (MB, 6-8, 2003, Long Island, N.Y., Penn State, Garden Empire)
21 Wesley Smith (MB, 6-11, 2004, Encinitas, Calif., Univ. of Southern California, Southern California)
23 Alex Rottman (OH, 6-7, 2004, Santa Barbara, Calif., Stanford, Southern California)
25 Theo Snoey (OH, 6-8, 2004, Berkeley, Calif., Stanford, Northern California)
Head Coach: Andy Read (Long Beach State)
Assistant Coaches: Chris Seiffert (Concordia-Irvine); Rory Prager (Univ. of Southern California)
U.S. Men's U21 Results at the 2023 FIVB World Championship
July 7 Argentina def. USA, 3-0 (25-22, 25-19, 25-23) --- Rama 7 kills, 1 block; Rowan 3 attack pts. and 1 ace
July 8 Belgium def. USA, 3-1 (25-23, 16-25, 25-22, 25-20) --- Rama 13 kills, 1 ace; Rowan 3 attack pts. and 1 ace
July 9 Czechia def. USA, 3-1 (25-19, 23-25, 25-23, 25-22) --- Rama 18 kills, 1 block, 1 ace; Rowan 2 attack pts. and 1 ace
July 11 Egypt def. USA, 3-1 (25-20, 25-20, 22-25, 25-20) --- no stats for UCLA players
July 12 Czechia def. USA, 3-0 (25-19, 25-16, 25-17) --- Rama 5 kills; Rowan 1 block
July 13 Mexico def. USA, 3-0 (25-18, 26-24, 20-25, 25-22) --- Rama 13 kills, 2 blocks
July 15 Consolation playoffs USA def. Bahrain, 3-1 (25-18, 25-22, 22-25, 25-21) --- Rama 12 kills, 1 block, 3 aces
July 16 13th place match USA def. Mexico, 3-0 (25-15, 25-21, 25-18) --- Rama 5 kills, 1 block, 2 aces
Players Mentioned
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