It’s hard not to fall in love with beach volleyball.

It conjures up visions of lazy summer days with friends, the sand warmed by the sun, the ocean nearby ready for a cool-off dip.

And it’s easy to fall in love AT beach volleyball.

Hawaii’s Brett Rosenmeier and Colton Cowell grew up knowing that — both of their sets of parents met while playing the sport, Rosenmeier’s on the East Coast circuit and Cowell’s on the sands of the famed 16th Street courts at Hermosa Beach, Calif.

It was something the 6-foot-5 Rosenmeier and 6-2 Cowell had in common when they teamed up last May to compete at the inaugural USA Volleyball Collegiate Beach Championships at Hermosa Beach. Seeded 10th out of 11 pairs, Rosenmeier-Cowell went 4-0 to reach the semifinals, where they were swept by second-seeded Jackson Brantle-Hagen Smith of UCLA, then fell 2-1 in the third-place match to Nathan Vander Meer (Davenport) and Logan Webber (Cincinnati Christian).

Although they didn’t return with a medal, both Rainbow Warriors outside hitters came back with an enhanced appreciation of what the beach game can do for one’s indoor game.

Want to stay on the court as a six-rotation player? Have that all-around game.

Rosenmeier, a junior, has been able to showcase more of that for the No. 3 Rainbow Warriors (6-0).

He’s started all five matches he’s played in and likely will start his sixth tonight against No. 2 UCLA (7-0) as Hawaii opens a 12-match homestand at the Stan Sheriff Center.

Rosenmeier, who grew up playing on the beaches of Virginia Beach, Va., is averaging 2.54 kills per set while hitting .410, is third in digs (17) and first in aces (9). His block total (9) matches his ace number, but statistics don’t account for the number of touches he’s had that have slowed the ball down for the Warriors defense behind him.

“He’s evolved into one of the best left-side blockers around,” Warriors coach Charlie Wade said. “And I won’t hesitate to play Colton (one start in five matches). It’s just that he’s No. 4 out of four really good outside hitters.”

That Rosenmeier and Cowell teamed up was as much coincidence as it was commitment. The beach championship information came late in the indoor season, and the Warriors were on the road for six of their last seven matches, and it conflicted with UH commencement, which kept graduating senior Kupono Fey out of the mix.

“Charlie asked whoever was interested to raise their hands,” Rosenmeier recalled. “I think we were the only ones, so we didn’t have any competition.”

“Last year we had the opportunity to play beach when we didn’t have practice or lifting in the afternoon,” Cowell said. “Brett and I knew we had the experience growing up playing on the beach.”

Cowell, a Star-Advertiser Fab 15 pick at King Kekaulike, first did so at Hermosa Beach, where mother Christina was one of the first females to play on the male-dominated 16th Street sands. Colton earned his AAA rating last summer there, nearly qualifying for the main draw of the AVP’s Hermosa Beach Open.

While Cowell was on the beach, Rosenmeier was in the Czech Repubic with the U.S. Junior National Team at the FIVB U21 World Championships. This week’s matches with the Bruins reunites half of that team: Hawaii’s Patrick Gasman, Austin Matautia, Gage Worsley and Rosenmeier, and UCLA’s Micah Ma’a and Dylan Missry.

Unlike women, there is no men’s collegiate beach championship at the NCAA level. Cowell and Rosenmeier lament that, saying they’d play both if there was.

Wade said Hawaii again will enter a pair, but now with more time to prepare, there will be more of a selection process.

“Certainly Brett and Colton represented us well and are a force to be reckoned with,” Wade said. “That they beat guys who had been playing together longer speaks to how much they love the game.”

The two Warriors have thought about winning a beach national championship May 12 at Hermosa Beach, but their focus is on winning an indoor one the week before some 17 miles up I-405, at UCLA’s Pauley Pavilion.

“With the right work ethic, dreams can be accomplished,” Cowell said. “We are taking it one step at a time. We’re focused first on the NCAA championship and, of course, first is UCLA this week.”