A new Olympic cycle brings new opportunities for the next generation of Bruins.

Some of UCLA men’s volleyball players are capitalizing on just that as they compete for Team USA in the 2025 FIVB Men’s Volleyball Nations League, which began on June 11 and will run until Aug. 3. The squad most recently completed its first two weeks of preliminary competition, beginning in Rio de Janeiro, before moving to Hoffman Estates, Illinois.

Representing Westwood are graduates outside hitter Cooper Robinson, middle blocker Merrick McHenry, outside hitter Ethan Champlin and setter Micah Ma’a, alongside rising senior setter and reserve Andrew Rowan.

Ma’a is the only Bruin of the five competing who also appeared in the 2024 Paris Olympics, where the United States captured a bronze medal.

“This is a really exciting year for all of the teams because it’s the start of a new Olympic cycle,” said coach Karch Kiraly. “You have a blend of wonderful, elite performances, skills and experiences.”

Kiraly competed for UCLA from 1979 to 1982, winning three national championships. After earning two Olympic gold medals as a player in 1984 and 1988, he served as the U.S. Women’s National Team coach from 2012 to 2024, before switching to the men’s squad last October.

The Santa Barbara, California, local led the 2021 Olympic women’s team to a gold medal and followed it with a silver medal placement in 2024.

“I’m extremely honored and privileged to work with this group … who’ve been doing it at such a high level for such a long time,” Kiraly said. “It’s also been a privilege to see the elite skills and sophistication with which the men play volleyball, and it’s an honor to be a part of that.”

The American squad split its first four games, securing victories over Iran and Cuba but losing to Ukraine and Slovenia, falling to the former in sweeping fashion.

Robinson delivered double-digit kills in three of the games across this opening stretch. The Pacific Palisades local currently leads the U.S. in total kills with a .463 hitting percentage.

Defensively, McHenry is currently tied for 10th in total blocks across the entire competition. He recorded seven denials in the USA-Iran match, which represented half of his total blocks so far in the tournament.

Team USA’s current 4-4 record may be attributed to the squad’s inexperience – a handful of players made their debut on the international stage – and it is currently ranked 13th in a pool of 18.

“We’re a young team with a lot of new guys,” said former Stanford libero and team captain Erik Shoji. “Day one, I literally met 10 or 15 guys out there, which is pretty unique for us. It’s just about a lot of communication, trying to gel on the court together and see how we can play. We don’t know each other very well, but the important thing is that we’re learning about each other on the court.”

The American team boasted another 2-2 campaign across its second week, defeating Canada and China while also being swept by Italy and Poland.

Champlin saw minimal playing time compared to Robinson across the first tournament’s first week. However, the three-time First Team All-American got involved against China, registering 10 kills.

Meanwhile, Robinson continued his string of strong performances with two additional double-digit kill outings.

“With a lot of young players, they need to experience what this level is like and what this environment can be like,” said former Stanford libero Kyle Dagostino. “That’s the beautiful part of this game. You come into some unfriendly environments, and you learn quickly how to survive. Even though we have some young players, I wouldn’t say that they’re inexperienced, and they’re very eager for this challenge to play around the world and to play against different styles of volleyball.”

While Ma’a and Rowan, who sit behind former Ball State setter Quinn Isaacson on the depth chart, saw limited court time, Robinson’s immediate pin-hitting impact indicates the potential for developing Team USA’s next generation.

Although Kiraly makes his debut helming a men’s squad with a bottom-half record, his experience in global play may warrant confidence in a budding American squad.

“The moment rarely got too big for our guys and even for the people who had never played on that stage before,” Kiraly said. “As the week went on, even though there were plenty of ugly plays and plays that need to be better, we competed hard throughout.”

Team USA will continue preliminary play against Turkey on July 16 in Chiba, Japan.