Hawaii men’s volleyball gains commitment from pair of blue chip prospects

Tread Rosenthal and Finn Kearney

by: Christian Shimabuku

Posted: Oct 17, 2022 / 06:13 PM HST

Updated: Oct 18, 2022 / 06:46 PM HST

Times are great for the University of Hawaii men’s volleyball team. After two straight national championships and a bid as good as any to get a third with its entire 2022 starting lineup back in 2023, the Rainbow Warriors appear ready to reload with a pair of marquee prospects.

Class of 2024 Tread Rosenthal and Finn Kearney have both pledged their commitments to join the program.

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Rosenthal is a 6-foot-9 setter who attends Mira Costa High School in California, while Kearney is a 6-foot-7 pin hitter who preps for Sandra Day O’Connor in Phoenix. Both are members of the U.S. under-19 national team.

“Obviously, it’s great to be committed here and stuff and with a great program, but the biggest part to me was probably the culture and the way the guys work in the practice gym and the fan base and everything just surrounding the program is just great,” Kearney told KHON2 sports director Rob DeMello.

“It’s an incredible fan base to play in front of. I’ve seen a few home games on TV and it’s insane how many people get there and how packed the gym is and I think just playing in front of that is like one of the most coolest experiences I can have,” added Rosenthal.

Future is bright for the Hawai’i men’s volleyball team as back-to-back national champs gain commitments from pair of blue chip prospects, Tread Rosenthal & Finn Kearney https://t.co/IFppbZz5hx #HawaiiMVB #GoBows @HawaiiMensVB 🤙🏽 pic.twitter.com/sDW9P7lM2N

When the USA took gold at the 2022 Pan-American Cup in May, Rosenthal was selected as the tournament’s best setter, while Kearney was selected as the top plus server. Although the two reside in different states, they knew they’d want to play together in college.

“Moving away from home and everything off the mainland, it’s just you’re going into a second family,” Kearney said. “Like, you’re going to be here and all the guys surrounding you, the fan base, all the support that you have on the island, it’s just going to be awesome. I always knew I wanted to play with Tread and him making his decision just helped it out a ton.”

Added Rosenthal: “I’m pretty sure he was the first person that I called and texted. I was like, ‘Hey, I’m going to Hawaii, I want you to come with me’. He was one of the first guys because we’ve grown that bond through the USA pipeline and it has just gotten better since we started hanging out together and playing together so it’s great. He’s a great person to go to college with,” Rosenthal said of his future college teammate.

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