{"id":217656,"date":"2025-06-19T16:43:00","date_gmt":"2025-06-20T02:43:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/?p=217656"},"modified":"2025-06-19T16:43:00","modified_gmt":"2025-06-20T02:43:00","slug":"averill-volleyball-olympics-uh-manoa","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/2025\/06\/19\/averill-volleyball-olympics-uh-manoa\/","title":{"rendered":"How Taylor Averill\u02bbs second chance at <abbr>UH<\/abbr> led to an Olympic podium"},"content":{"rendered":"<span class=\"span-reading-time rt-reading-time\" style=\"display: block;\"><span class=\"rt-label rt-prefix\">Reading time: <\/span> <span class=\"rt-time\"> 2<\/span> <span class=\"rt-label rt-postfix\">minutes<\/span><\/span><div class=\"responsive-video-wrap-post\"><figure class=\"wp-block-embed wp-block-embed-youtube is-type-video is-provider-youtube epyt-figure\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\"><div class=\"epyt-video-wrapper\"><iframe  id=\"_ytid_80767\"  width=\"620\" height=\"349\"  data-origwidth=\"620\" data-origheight=\"349\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/yTGgD_Ln4Lk?enablejsapi=1&origin=https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu&rel=0&autoplay=0&cc_load_policy=0&cc_lang_pref=&iv_load_policy=1&loop=0&fs=1&playsinline=0&autohide=2&theme=dark&color=red&controls=1&disablekb=0&\" class=\"__youtube_prefs__  no-lazyload\" title=\"Alumni Hali&#039;a Aloha: Taylor Averill\"  allow=\"fullscreen; accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen data-no-lazy=\"1\" data-skipgform_ajax_framebjll=\"\"><\/iframe><\/div><\/div><\/figure><\/div>\n<p>In 2024, University of <span aria-label=\"Hawaii\">Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> at M\u0101noa alumnus Taylor Averill played volleyball for Team USA in the Paris Olympics. He helped to secure a bronze medal and was named Best Middle Blocker. However, according to Averill, nothing compares to <span aria-label=\"Hawaii\">Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> volleyball.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;There were more people at this year\u2019s [<abbr title=\"University of Hawaii\">UH<\/abbr> game vs. Long Beach State] than were in the stands at the Olympics,&rdquo; Averill said. &ldquo;There\u2019s nothing like all the love and support you get in <span aria-label=\"Hawaii\">Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span>.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Related stories:<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/2024\/07\/26\/12-uh-athletes-to-compete-in-paris-olympics\/\">12 <abbr>UH<\/abbr> athletes to compete in Paris Olympics<\/a>, July 26, 2024<br \/>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/2024\/07\/31\/image-of-the-week-olympic-volleyball\/\">Image of the Week: Olympic volleyball<\/a>, July 31, 2024<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<figure id=\"attachment_217663\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-217663\" style=\"width: 300px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/manoa-volleyball-averill-uh-300x257.jpg\" alt=\"Averill spiking a volleyball\" width=\"300\" height=\"257\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-217663\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/manoa-volleyball-averill-uh-300x257.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/manoa-volleyball-averill-uh-130x112.jpg 130w, https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/manoa-volleyball-averill-uh.jpg 676w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-217663\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Averill #13, <span aria-label=\"Hawaii\">Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> vs. Penn State Game 2015<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h2>Rough start<\/h2>\n<p>The California native\u2019s collegiate volleyball journey did not begin in M\u0101noa. In 2012, after one semester at <abbr title=\"university of California\">UC<\/abbr> Irvine, Averill was cut from the volleyball team. Determined to keep playing, he reached out to <abbr>UH<\/abbr> M\u0101noa Head Coach Charlie Wade.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;At that time, [Wade] just said, &lsquo;Hey, we all make mistakes,&rsquo; and I just felt like I resonated with his message,&rdquo; Averill recalled. &ldquo;It just felt like a good fit.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>He joined the Rainbow Warriors as a setter\/opposite hitter but was soon cut again at the end of his freshman year.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;When I first came to <abbr>UH<\/abbr>, it\u2019s almost like I didn\u2019t learn my lesson at <abbr>UC<\/abbr> Irvine,&rdquo; Averill said, admitting his priorities at the time were partying and playing volleyball.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_217661\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-217661\" style=\"width: 300px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/manoa-volleyball-averill-usa.jpg\" alt=\"Two volleyball players\" width=\"300\" height=\"300\" class=\"size-full wp-image-217661\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/manoa-volleyball-averill-usa.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/manoa-volleyball-averill-usa-130x130.jpg 130w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-217661\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Averill (right) with Max Holt at the 2024 Paris Olympics<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h2>Another second chance<\/h2>\n<p>Realizing he needed to change, Averill transformed himself&#8212;dropping 20 pounds, adding 11 inches to his vertical, and earning a 4.0 <abbr title=\"grade point average\">GPA<\/abbr>. After he pleaded with Wade, the coach gave him one more chance, but made it clear the only open position was middle blocker.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;I went to the Olympics because I\u2019m a middle blocker. I went to the Olympics because in those six months, I realized what real hard work looked like,&rdquo; said Averill. &ldquo;I owe so much of my career professionally, with the national team to what happened to me here in <span aria-label=\"Hawaii\">Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span>.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Averill became a two-time <abbr title=\"American Volleyball Coaches Association\">AVCA<\/abbr> First Team All-American and earned a bachelor\u2019s degree in sociology from <abbr>UH<\/abbr> M\u0101noa in 2015.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_217660\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-217660\" style=\"width: 214px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/manoa-volleyball-averill-medal-214x300.jpg\" alt=\"Averill clapping while wearing the bronze medal\" width=\"214\" height=\"300\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-217660\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/manoa-volleyball-averill-medal-214x300.jpg 214w, https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/manoa-volleyball-averill-medal-93x130.jpg 93w, https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/manoa-volleyball-averill-medal.jpg 250w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 214px) 100vw, 214px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-217660\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Averill at the 2024 Paris Olympics<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h2>Pushing through<\/h2>\n<p>After graduating, Averill went on to play professionally in Italy, France and Poland. While playing overseas, he dealt with injuries, self-doubt and mental health challenges. The excitement he once had for volleyball began to fade, and injuries kept him from training with the national team.<\/p>\n<p>He considered stepping away from volleyball entirely, but eventually came to a place of clarity: &ldquo;I know I\u2019m an Olympian no matter what. I love myself whether I go or not.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>By summer 2023, he was able to train with Team <abbr>USA<\/abbr>. In May 2024, the Olympic team was announced, and Averill made the cut.<\/p>\n<p>Averill said, &ldquo;I just kept pushing through, and I&#8217;m so happy I did because the experience of the Olympics was, without a doubt, like the coolest experience of my entire life.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/uhalumni.org\/\">Learn more about other outstanding <abbr>UH<\/abbr> Alumni<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p><abbr>UH<\/abbr> M\u0101noa volleyball\u2019s Taylor Averill turned heartbreak into hard work and Olympic glory.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":16,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[29],"tags":[90,679,58,261,714,271,9,550,56,80],"class_list":["post-217656","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-people","tag-alumni","tag-alumni-recognition","tag-athletics","tag-sociology","tag-student-athlete","tag-uh-alumni-association","tag-uh-manoa","tag-manoa-athletics","tag-video-2","tag-volleyball","entry","has-media"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t<!-- All in One SEO 5.0.0.1 - aioseo.com -->\n\t<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Â鶹´«Ã½M\u0101noa volleyball\u2019s Taylor Averill turned heartbreak into hard work and Olympic glory.\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"max-image-preview:large\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Â鶹´«Ã½News\"\/>\n\t<meta name=\"keywords\" content=\"university of 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