If you’re a student or staff member at West Albany High School (WAHS), there’s a good chance you’ve been to one of the PowderTuff volleyball games held every year. The match provides an opportunity for boys at WAHS to play volleyball and participate in a sport that they otherwise wouldn’t have been able to do at the school.
On Oct. 6, OSAA approved Men’s Volleyball as an official sport, alongside the emergence of Girls’ Flag Football. Teens at WAHS can finally have their own Men’s Volleyball team.
Bennett Madsen, a junior PowderTuff volleyball player, expressed his enthusiasm at the addition of the sport. “I think the environment that it brings, the energy that it brings, is gonna be awesome,” Madsen said.
Adding a sport like this has the ability to change spring sports across the state by giving more options to potential athletes and will undoubtedly have a huge impact here at WAHS, because many boys already play club volleyball.
“It was such an exciting announcement, and I know there are a lot of guys here that have been looking forward to that for a while now,” said girls’ volleyball coach Katie Roskelley. “They love volleyball, and they’re really looking forward to the chance to play for their school.”
While WAHS could have a men’s volleyball team as soon as this spring, it isn’t guaranteed because of the time it takes to set up a new sports team.
“You have to pay for coaching staff, equipment, and uniforms,” said Roskelley. “You’ve got transportation to pay for.There’s a lot that will go into the financial issues that come with putting together a team.”
Preparations are currently underway for implementing men’s volleyball, including the recruitment of coaches.
“They’re getting ready, [and] they’ve got a coach. The coach has been going to practices to get the gist of high school volleyball,” said senior Zyon Moevao, a varsity volleyball player.
Adding it as a spring sport will also make it one of the only sports during that time of year to be indoors. This makes it easier and more comfortable to spectate.
Men’s Volleyball could be coming to WAHS soon. With its addition, spring sports as a whole could stand to gain popularity among the students at WAHS and across the whole state.
“There’s a lot of momentum,” Roskelley said. “There [are] a lot of guys that love playing volleyball and have wanted to play for a while, and club has been their only option.”
