The Volleyball Nations League got underway last week, with nine current and former Long Beach State athletes representing four different countries.
Brothers Alex and Moni Nikolov are both competing for Bulgaria, alongside middle blocker Lazar Bouchkov and outside hitter Alex Kandev. Team USA features Long Beach alumni Mason Briggs, Kyle Ensing, and Shane Holdaway. Simon Torwie is representing Germany, while Skyler Varga is playing for Canada.
Bulgaria
Alex and Moni Nikolov each had a one-year stint at Long Beach State and became the only two players in NCAA history to win both AVCA Player of the Year and AVCA Newcomer of the Year honors. This year marks the first time the brothers are sharing the court in the VNL.
Alex Kandev was a major contributor to Long Beach State’s 2025 national championship run, leading the team in kills in both the semifinal and championship matches. He plans to return to the Beach after the VNL season.
Through four matches, Bulgaria is 2-2 with wins over Argentina and Germany. Alex Nikolov has averaged over 14 kills per match, while Moni is averaging 22 successful sets per match and was named to the VNL’s Week One Dream Team. Each brother has also recorded at least one ace per match, with Moni averaging two aces per match.
USA
Three-time AVCA First Team All-American libero Mason Briggs has appeared in all four matches for Team USA. Briggs played four seasons at Long Beach State and helped lead the Beach to the 2024 national title game.
Opposite hitter Kyle Ensing is in his fourth year with Team USA in the VNL since graduating from Long Beach State in 2019. He was a key part of Long Beach State’s back-to-back national championships in 2018 and 2019, reaching the NCAA Final Four in all four collegiate seasons.
Shane Holdaway, a middle blocker, also played four years at Long Beach State and was part of the 2019 national title team. He graduated in 2023 after starting all 25 matches in his senior season.
Team USA is 2-2 after one week of play, with wins over Iran and Cuba. The team currently ranks sixth in the FIVB Men’s Volleyball World Rankings.
Germany
Middle blocker Simon Torwie is representing Germany, where he grew up and played for the country’s U18 national team. He played four years at Long Beach State and earned First Team All-Conference honors as a senior in 2024.
Torwie is averaging over five kills and four blocks per match through Germany’s first four matches. Germany is 1-3, with a win over France and three narrow five-set losses to Bulgaria, Canada, and Italy.
Canada
Skyler Varga is one of two active Long Beach State players in the VNL and has started to see action in the last two of Canada’s matches. Varga joined the VNL following a standout junior season at Long Beach State, where he helped the Beach capture a national championship.
The outside hitter saw the court for the first time in the VNL during a match against former teammate Moni Nikolov and Bulgaria, recording a pair of kills. Varga also tallied 12 kills against France.
Canada is 2-2, with wins over Germany in the opener and a recent sweep of Bulgaria.
