The path back to the Olympics medal podium for Team USA Men’s Beach Volleyball now rests solely in the hands of two Los Angeles metro area natives, including Palisades High School graduate Miles Partain.
On Monday, Partain and his partner, Rancho Palos Verdes’ Andy Benesh, moved into the quarterfinals of the 2024 Paris Olympics volleyball bracket, defeating Italy’s Samuele Cottafava and Paolo Nicolai in straight sets. Winning the Round of 16 matchup 21-17 and 21-18 sets the duo up for a quarterfinal showdown Wednesday, either against a team from Qatar or Chile.
After losing their first Olympics preliminary phase contest to Cuba, Partain and Benesh rebounded in the blistering conditions of Eiffel Tower Stadium on July 30, taking care of a Moroccan squad in straight sets. To make the Round of 16, the team had to overcome a three-set marathon against Brazil’s George Souto Maior Wanderley and Andre Loyola Stein, splitting the first two sets before winning the deciding third by a score of 15-8.
Between the Morocco and Brazil preliminary matchups, a leadership change was made by the team, as Partain and Benesh parted ways with coach Mike Placek after a team meeting. In a joint statement, the two stated they were "grateful" for their coach’s "generosity, dedication and tireless efforts" but decided it was best "to part ways and explore different strategic paths."
"We remain deeply appreciative of what (Placek) has done for us and wish him continued success in all his future endeavors … we have a great support staff and appreciate their effort and commitment during this transition," the duo stated, adding that the reasoning behind the decision will remain private.
Monday’s matchup against Italy was decided by Partain’s aggression in the second set, scoring 7 of his duo’s 10 attack points while having two successful digs in the set. In total, Partain scored 12 attack points against Italy, and the Palisades native also showed his serving skills by putting 19 of his 21 serves into play.
The hopes of Team USA’s Olympics now lies solely on Partain and Benesh, as the other American unit of Chase Budinger and Miles Evans were defeated by Norway’s Anders Mol and Christian Sorum in the Round of 16. Partain and Benesh defeated the Norwegian duo last year in the finals of the Beach Pro Tour Elite16 tournament in Switzerland. The last time men’s beach volleyball received a medal was in the 2008 Beijing games, where Todd Rogers and Phil Dalhausser took home the gold.
Wednesday’s Olympics matchup will take place at 1 p.m. for those on the West Coast. Games can be caught live on the Peacock app, with replays on the NBCUniversal family of networks.
