On Wednesday, March 6, 2024, Woodrun Junior/Senior High School students participated in the school's first boys' volleyball practice in nearly 40 years.
WOODBURN, Ind. (WAYNE) — Decades after Olympic gold medalist Roy Ball roamed the halls, Woodrun Junior/Senior High School plans to add a boys volleyball program for its students.
Stacey Salzbrenner, a teacher at Woodrun and one of two people who shares head coaching duties with Jody Price, said the school has had a boys volleyball team since 1985. He said he has not done so.
“It's very exciting for us to be a part of history and bring back a sport that we love and that we played when we were at Woodrun,” Salzbrenner said.
Salzbrenner also said enough students tried out the sport to fill both the varsity and junior varsity teams.
Although most of the students came to tryouts and Wednesday's practice with minimal volleyball experience, Price and Salzbrenner said they enjoyed the competition and were eager to learn about volleyball.
“For us, it's more fun [and] It's more about the love of being part of a team [and] just part of the program [that’s] We brought history back to Woodrun High School,” Salzbrenner said.
The addition of boys volleyball at Woodrun reflects a statewide trend that has allowed the sport to grow and recently become an “emerging sport” under the Indiana High School Athletic Association (IHSAA).
According to the IHSAA, when a sport is designated as an emerging sport, the IHSAA provides the rulebook and the sport is subject to the organization's policies and regulations.
For a competitive program to move from being an emerging sport to being officially recognized by the IHSAA, at least 50 percent of the IHSAA's 407 schools must participate in that sport.
Price and Salzbrenner hope the sport continues to grow and eventually be officially recognized by the IHSAA.
“It's going to be very interesting to see where it goes,” Price said.
Woodlan's first game will be on the road against Northrop High School on March 18th, and its first home game will be March 27th.
