Philomath High introduced boys volleyball as one of its newest sports Tuesday and an estimated 120 watched from the bleachers as the Warriors faced a South Albany squad that also included players from West Albany and Santiam Christian.
The visitors ended up with a 25-23, 25-11, 15-25, 25-20 win.
“I was stoked about how much progress they’ve made the past two weeks … and how they’ve come together,” PHS coach Helen Bennett said. “They looked like a team out there.”
Senior outside hitter Carson Winder provided a number of highlights for Philomath with his play at the net.
“I love how much of a team sport it is — you have to rely on everyone around you to succeed,” Winder said. “You can’t be 1-on-6 and it’s just a very satisfying sport to play. A good hit feels amazing, a good pass feels better and a good serve, you can’t beat it.”
Winder has some background in the sport through his involvement in club volleyball. In fact, he’s played with three or four players on the opposing team.
“We started out as a completely green team except for two players,” Winder said. “I’m really happy with the work we’ve done, even in like two weeks. I think if we can continue improving at the same rate that we have been, we could actually be a really good team.”
Some players have more experience than others through club volleyball — G3 Academy in Corvallis has a popular program. Bennett has a range on her roster with several who had never played.
“Carson’s probably our most experienced player,” Bennett said. “We’re obviously excited to have him and he’s a senior and will be big shoes to fill but we’re just trying to get into a rhythm with some consistency so that we can really make them shine.”
Two other seniors in key positions include setter Isac Marcelo and libero Raul Sanchez. Along with Winder, the other outside hitter is junior Andrew Muir.
“It just sounded like a lot of fun and I was excited to try it out,” Muir said when asked why he wanted to play volleyball. “This past year, we’ve been practicing and improving a lot.”
Bennett has 14 students in the program, including a half dozen seniors. A full squad in high school volleyball is typically 12.
“I have a couple of practice players and I also have quite a few seniors on my roster,” Bennett said. “I’ve got to plan for the future and we didn’t really want to cut anyone because if they stay on the team, whether they play in a game or not, they’re still getting all that skill building for three months during the season and then whatever activities we do as far as summer camps or offseason open gyms, etc.”
Muir was another player who showed a high level of athleticism on the court.
“We have a chance of being good but we have a lot to improve,” Muir said. “I was impressed with how we played.”
Philomath will play a 16-match schedule along with an appearance in a tournament at West Salem. The Warriors were placed in Special District 2 along with Marshfield, Newport and North Bend.
“Because we only have a four-team league, we’re going to doubleheaders,” Bennett said. “So we’re going to have 4 p.m. and 6 p.m. matches and if we go five sets, it’s going to be a challenge as far as nutrition and stamina.”
Boys volleyball carries the “emerging activity” designation from the Oregon School Activities Association. According to the OSAA, emerging athletics — girls flag football is another one — have the “potential to meet the required number of schools participating to be considered for official sanctioning.” Girls wrestling recently made the transition from emerging to official sanctioning.
The rules are the same as girls volleyball with best-of-five matches. The season will end with a “culminating event” on May 24-25.
Assisting Bennett with coaching duties is Autumn Hilberg, the former PHS girls volleyball coach.
Bennett said she was excited about taking on the challenge.
“I wanted to get involved in a program maybe from the ground floor and focus on skill building and using my knowledge to help them grow the program,” said Bennett, who had stepped away from coaching girls club volleyball. “I told myself that if Philomath ever gets a boys program then I’m going to apply and they did.”
Philomath (0-1) will hit the court again Thursday with a trip to Molalla. The next home match won’t be until April 15 with one of those doubleheaders against North Bend and Newport.
