It took just seven months since starting his first collegiate volleyball match for J.T. Hatch to put together an impressive list of accomplishments in both NCAA and national play.
Appearing in every match of his freshman season with UCLA men’s volleyball, Hatch contributed a team-high 247 kills and added 142 digs defensively. He quickly established himself as one of the Bruins’ most dependable players on both sides of the court.
The awards rolled in, as Hatch was named an American Volleyball Coaches Association honorable mention All-American, an Off the Block Freshman All-American and the 2015 Mountain Pacific Sports Federation Freshman of the Year. A month later, Hatch became team captain of the 2015 U.S. Men’s Junior National Team for the U21 Pan American Cup. The U.S. went 4-2 in the tournament, capturing a silver medal and qualifying for the upcoming U21 World Championship in September.
Hatch joined two other Bruins on the 21-man USA Volleyball Junior National Training Team before the Pan American Cup. Junior libero Jackson Bantle and redshirt sophomore middle blocker Oliver Martin, however, did not make the final 12-man Junior National Team after two weeks at the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Lake Placid, N.Y.
The U.S. roster included seven players from the MPSF, including Brigham Young University’s Brenden Sander and UC Santa Barbara’s Hayden Boehle, who were on the 2015 All-MPSF Freshman Team with Hatch.
With a pair of losses to Brazil in the Pan American Cup, including in the gold medal match, the Junior National Team finished in second place overall.
“We were excited coming to the final, but we could not score key points when we needed to,” Hatch said in a NORCECA press conference following the team’s loss. “We are happy how we played throughout the tournament.”
The team will take the next month off before beginning preparations for the World Championships in Tijuana, Mexico. There, the U.S. will be in a pool with Argentina, Poland and Russia.
Compiled by Tanner Walters, Bruin Sports senior staff.