This episode of SANDCAST: Beach Volleyball with Tri Bourne and Travis Mewhirter features USC Beach Volleyball head coach Dain Blanton and his most recent star, Maddie White. Coming off a fourth straight NCAA Championship, now heading for an astonishing fifth, USC is, per usual, the team to beat in 2025. On this episode, we chat about:

• The growth of the sport at the NCAA level, and how recruiting has changed to a national and global level
• The benefits of college athletics, and how it has changed the game forever
• Dain Blanton’s experiences at the Olympics, and the dynamics of team leadership.
• How the landscape of beach volleyball has evolved, particularly in terms of player development and the increasing competitiveness of the sport.
• The differences between the college model and professional beach volleyball.

And, as always, much, much more.

SHOOTS!

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Get 20 PERCENT off all Wilson products with our code, SANDCAST63. https://www.wilson.com/en-us/volleyball

Introducing Balltime, the AI platform making breaking down film and statistics EASY (FINALLY!). Use our link for a discount and give it a try!

Want to get better at beach volleyball? Use our discount code, SANDCAST, and get 10 percent off all Better at Beach products!

We are FIRED UP to announce that we've signed on for another year with Athletic Greens! Get a FREE year's supply of Vitamin D by purchasing with that link.

We have a new book! Playbook of Champions: The habits, routines, and stories of Olympians, Champions, and world-class athletes. If you listen to the show – which, if you’re reading this, then you are – then this is the perfect book for you, as it is a distillation of the best golden nuggets from our first five years of the podcast. Check it out on Amazon!

We now have SANDCAST MERCHANDISE!! Rock the gear of your favorite podcast today! https://www.sandcastmerch.com/

If you want to receive our SANDCAST weekly newsletter, the Beach Volleyball Digest, which dishes all the biggest news in beach volleyball in one quick newsletter, head over to our website and subscribe! We'd love to have ya! https://www.sandcastvolleyball.com/

Check out our book, Volleyball for Milkshakes, written by SANDCAST hosts Tri Bourne and Travis Mewhirter: https://www.amazon.com/Volleyball-Milkshakes-Travis-Mewhirter/dp/B089781SHB

This episode of SANDCAST: Beach Volleyball with Tri Bourne and Travis Mewhirter, features Switzerland's Anouk Verge-Depre and Joana Mader, a trailblazing team who won a European Championship, Olympic bronze medal, and pioneered an era of Swiss dominance, which now includes Nina Brunner and Tanja Huberli, and Esmee Bobner and Zoe Verge-Depre. This episode was recorded at the Hamburg Elite16, where Anouk and Joana played their last tournament as a team. On this episode, we chat and reflect upon:

• The many ups and downs of their partnership, which had the highest of highs – Olympic medals, European Championships – and the lowest of lows – injuries and more injuries.
• How Anouk switched both sides and positions so seamlessly
• What it was like to help Switzerland become such a power in the beach volleyball world
• What the future looks like for Switzerland beach volleyball

This episode originally appeared on the @BeachVolleyballWorld YouTube Channel. Follow and subscribe there to get more content like this!

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Get 20 PERCENT off all Wilson products with our code, SANDCAST63. https://www.wilson.com/en-us/volleyball

Introducing Balltime, the AI platform making breaking down film and statistics EASY (FINALLY!). Use our link for a discount and give it a try!

Want to get better at beach volleyball? Use our discount code, SANDCAST, and get 10 percent off all Better at Beach products!

We are FIRED UP to announce that we've signed on for another year with Athletic Greens! Get a FREE year's supply of Vitamin D by purchasing with that link.

We have a new book! Playbook of Champions: The habits, routines, and stories of Olympians, Champions, and world-class athletes. If you listen to the show – which, if you’re reading this, then you are – then this is the perfect book for you, as it is a distillation of the best golden nuggets from our first five years of the podcast. Check it out on Amazon!

We now have SANDCAST MERCHANDISE!! Rock the gear of your favorite podcast today! https://www.sandcastmerch.com/

If you want to receive our SANDCAST weekly newsletter, the Beach Volleyball Digest, which dishes all the biggest news in beach volleyball in one quick newsletter, head over to our website and subscribe! We'd love to have ya! https://www.sandcastvolleyball.com/

Check out our book, Volleyball for Milkshakes, written by SANDCAST hosts Tri Bourne and Travis Mewhirter: https://www.amazon.com/Volleyball-Milkshakes-Travis-Mewhirter/dp/B089781SHB

This episode of SANDCAST: Beach Volleyball with Tri Bourne and Travis Mewhirter, features Matt Levoe, one of the most respected referees in the game of beach volleyball and also the first ref we’ve had on since John Rodriguez quite some time ago. It was a much-needed episode, as we chatted:

• The never-ending, constantly revolving debate around calling doubles and lifts. How do refs call it, and how has it changed in recent years?
• Why would anyone in their right mind want to become a referee?
• Troy Fields catch and release joust, and other nuanced rules of the game
• Adapting between reffing indoor and beach, professional and college

And so much more. This is a fully comprehensive discussion on the rules and how the sport of volleyball and beach volleyball is called.

SHOOTS!

***

Get 20 PERCENT off all Wilson products with our code, SANDCAST63. https://www.wilson.com/en-us/volleyball

Introducing Balltime, the AI platform making breaking down film and statistics EASY (FINALLY!). Use our link for a discount and give it a try!

Want to get better at beach volleyball? Use our discount code, SANDCAST, and get 10 percent off all Better at Beach products!

We are FIRED UP to announce that we've signed on for another year with Athletic Greens! Get a FREE year's supply of Vitamin D by purchasing with that link.

We have a new book! Playbook of Champions: The habits, routines, and stories of Olympians, Champions, and world-class athletes. If you listen to the show – which, if you’re reading this, then you are – then this is the perfect book for you, as it is a distillation of the best golden nuggets from our first five years of the podcast. Check it out on Amazon!

We now have SANDCAST MERCHANDISE!! Rock the gear of your favorite podcast today! https://www.sandcastmerch.com/

If you want to receive our SANDCAST weekly newsletter, the Beach Volleyball Digest, which dishes all the biggest news in beach volleyball in one quick newsletter, head over to our website and subscribe! We'd love to have ya! https://www.sandcastvolleyball.com/

Check out our book, Volleyball for Milkshakes, written by SANDCAST hosts Tri Bourne and Travis Mewhirter: https://www.amazon.com/Volleyball-Milkshakes-Travis-Mewhirter/dp/B089781SHB