Nine Southern California athletes, including five from Orange County, are on the 12-player USA Volleyball squad currently competing in the International Volleyball Federation Boys Under-19 World Championship tournament that runs through Aug. 11 in San Juan, Argentina.
Selected from a pool of 20 candidates who gathered July 23–29 at the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, the group includes four from Orange County who were members of the U.S. entry that won a gold medal in the Pan Am Cup in Guatemala City in March.
Kellen Larson of Woodbridge High School in Irvine, Trent Taliaferro of San Juan Capistrano’s JSerra Catholic High, Sterling Foley of Corona del Mar High in Newport Beach, and Mission Viejo’s Josh Aruya are among the team’s 10 Pan Am Cup veterans.
In addition, Larson, Foley, and 6-foot-8 middle blocker Kaumana Carreira of Tesoro High in Las Flores are among eight returnees from the 2022 under-19 team that won the Pan Am Cup for the first time and qualified for this year’s World Championship.
Such veteran leadership figures to be advantageous for a U.S. team seeking its first world championship medal. The best U.S. performance ever was a 10th-place finish in 2009.
“Our strength would be our culture, our inclusion and how we play together and play for the guy next to us,” U.S. Coach Charlie Sullivan said in a USA Volleyball press release. “I think that’s a cultural thing that has gone through our program, top to bottom.”
Team captain Sean Kelly of Manhattan Beach, who attends Los Angeles’s Loyola High and was the most valuable player in last year’s Pan Am Cup, outlined the group’s mindset.
“We’re looking forward to competing and getting better as a team,” Kelly said in the press release. “We’ve only had a few days to play together, so we’re looking forward to getting better and seeing all the new competition.”
The U.S. opened pool play in the 20-team tournament Aug. 3 against Costa Rica, and was set to face Egypt at 5 p.m. Aug. 4; Argentina at 5 p.m. Aug. 5; and Serbia at 2 p.m. Aug. 6.
The tournament will continue with the round of 16 and classification playoffs, followed by the quarterfinals Aug. 9; the semifinals Aug. 10; and the championship match Aug. 11. All matches are scheduled to be shown on the Volleyball World YouTube channel.
Tread Rosenthal of Mira Costa High in Manhattan Beach, the most valuable player, Kelly, Larson, and Aruya all earned individual honors in this year’s Pan Am Cup. Other returnees from that squad include Mira Costa’s Victor Loiola and Marek Turner of Woodrow Wilson High in Long Beach.
Larson and Rosenthal were among winners of individual awards in last year’s Pan Am Cup, while Foley, Kelly, and Loiola also earned gold medals.
Corona del Mar High’s Ryan Gant and Caleb Sapp of Claremont High are among the team’s eight alternates.
