Our son connected with the program immediately. After his first training session, he was already beginning to “bleed OP blue.” He found coaches he respected, teammates he cared about, and a culture in which he felt challenged, supported, and known.
We regularly pinch ourselves that we found Ocean Point. Joining its founding team has been both a parent’s dream and a player’s dream. In one season, the club gave our son exactly what he needed to grow, and often more than we knew to ask for.
We are proud to be part of the Ocean Point family and excited to watch this community continue to grow.
From the start, we hoped he would receive excellent coaching, improve his skills, and deepen his love for the game. What we found was something far greater: a club that develops athletes, builds teams, mentors young men, and creates a genuine community among players and families.
Ocean Point is more than a volleyball club; it is a culture.
That culture begins with the intentionality and vision of Club Director Alex Knight. From the start, Alex set out to create a program where competitive excellence and joy could exist together. His goal was not simply to assemble talented players, but to help a group of boys become disciplined athletes, trusted teammates, emerging leaders, and young men of character. He has also been remarkably thoughtful about the coaches he brings into the gym. Ocean Point’s staff includes coaches with experience at UCLA, on NCAA championship teams, with USA Volleyball, in professional leagues, and at the Olympic level. They understand the sport at its highest levels, but just as importantly, they understand boys. They know how to connect with young athletes during an important stage of their development, and they know how to build meaningful relationships with their families.
As parents who are former Division I athletes, school founders, career educators, and experienced coaches at both the high school and collegiate levels, we have high expectations for the adults who work with our children. Our family has also spent eight years participating in several of Southern California’s top club programs. We understand how competitive this volleyball market is and how difficult it can be for a new club to establish a clear identity.
Ocean Point did that from day one.
The club created a remarkably well-defined culture during its very first season. Practices were demanding, competitive, and purposeful, but the boys were also encouraged to enjoy the game and one another. The coaches focused on technical development, volleyball IQ, teamwork, accountability, confidence, and leadership. They understood when to challenge the players, when to encourage them, and how to meet the needs of both the team and each individual athlete.
We saw evidence of that growth from one training session to the next, one match to the next, and one tournament to the next. The boys learned how to communicate, trust one another, respond to adversity, and function as an interdependent team. They grew not only as volleyball players, but also as young men.
Alex Knight, Matt Aziz, Grant Sloane, Zach Rama, and the rest of the coaching staff became exceptional role models for our boys. They shared firsthand lessons about the discipline, preparation, sacrifice, teamwork, and commitment required to compete at the highest levels. They did not simply tell the players what excellence looks like—they had lived it themselves.
The opportunities extended well beyond normal club practices. Throughout the season, the team interacted with athletes and coaches from some of the highest levels of the game. The boys attended UCLA matches as honored guests, spent time with players afterward, and were supported at tournaments by members of the UCLA volleyball community. Players and coaches even joined the boys in their huddle before matches.
Olympian Miles Partain, a former indoor and beach teammate of Alex Knight, also volunteered his time to work with the team. Ocean Point welcomed additional professional, collegiate, and Olympic-level guest coaches throughout the year, giving the boys access to perspectives and experiences that are extremely rare in youth sports.
These moments were exciting, but their value went far beyond meeting accomplished athletes. The boys saw that elite players could also be humble, generous, encouraging, and invested in the next generation. They learned that greatness is not only measured by wins and awards, but also by how a person serves others.
The community Ocean Point created among families was equally meaningful. From the beginning, the club intentionally planned activities that included the entire team and their families. Parents got to know one another, friendships developed, and the experience became something we shared together.
The season was well organized, and communication was transparent, timely, and thoughtful. Families understood what was happening, what was expected, and how decisions were being made. That level of professionalism helped build trust and allowed parents to feel like genuine partners in the experience.
What has impressed us most is the balance Ocean Point has achieved. The club takes competition seriously and prepares its athletes to compete with some of the strongest programs in the country. At the same time, it never loses sight of the boys themselves.
The coaches are growing their love for volleyball while teaching them how to be good teammates. They are building confidence without creating entitlement. They are demanding excellence while making room for mistakes, learning, laughter, and joy. They are developing complete athletes without forgetting that these athletes are still young people who need encouragement, guidance, and trusted mentors.
It is rare to find a youth sports organization where athletes have access to this level of coaching and experience. It is even rarer to find one where the quality of the relationships matches the quality of the volleyball instruction.
That is what makes Ocean Point special.
Developing Champions. Competing with Joy.