Volleyball wasn’t senior Aidan Cuppett’s first love; a lacrosse and basketball player throughout his childhood, Aidan didn’t begin playing volleyball until seventh grade.
“To get here, it’s been a mix of hard work and dedication,” Aidan said. “And a little bit of luck, since I’m pretty tall.”
Though he had a late start, Aidan never backed down, rising quickly to the top teams at Mountain View Volleyball Club (MVVC) and joining Los Altos High School’s varsity volleyball team in his sophomore year as an outside hitter. That same year, he made the De Anza League’s First Team and earned both Most Valuable Player at LAHS and Sophomore of the League. In his junior season, Aidan helped the Eagles maintain a near-perfect 14–1 league record and was named MVP once again.
“He’s always been a leader of the team, as a player and as a person,” varsity volleyball Head Coach Peter Kim said. “Quite often, he’s the one everyone counts on, and he takes on that challenge and does so well.”
This summer, he traveled to Florida with his MVVC team to attend the Amateur Athletic Union Junior National Volleyball Championships, competing against other top club teams in the nation and bringing home two bronze medals.
“When I set a goal, I won’t stop until I’ve reached it,” Aidan said. “In this case, I wanted to prove everyone wrong — everyone who doubted me. I said I wanted to play Division I basketball, and when I switched to volleyball, I still kept that dream [of playing Division I].”
This October, Aidan reached that goal, committing to the University of California, Irvine to play Division I volleyball. With a volleyball team ranked eighth in the nation in 2023 and a highly-ranked biology program, UCI offered both the great athletic and academic programs Aidan desired.
“Besides the playing time I’d get at UCI, their culture was also great,” Aidan said. “People are more competitive, they want more and they do more, and that’s my kind of people.”
With great club experience, noteworthy skill and a recent college commitment, Aidan will continue to bring a potent combination of leadership and camaraderie to the LAHS courts this spring in his final high school volleyball season.
“Aidan’s someone you can always count on, on and off the court,” Varsity volleyball player senior Ben Freda-Eskenazi said. “He’s great at what he does, but he also makes practice and games such a great time to spend with him.”
Reflecting on his journey, Aiden acknowledges the challenges and joy he finds throughout his career.
“It’s been some tough shit, but it’s been fun,” Aidan said. “But there’s never been a situation where I’m like, ‘Man, why am I doing this?’ I just love competing so much, and I can’t imagine not playing this sport that I love.”
