KIMBERLY (NBC 26) – Boys’ high school volleyball is one of the fastest growing sports across the country. This week on Youth Sports: Beyond the Score, NBC 26 spoke with the Kimberly Papermakers boys volleyball team to find out why.
“I think the more I can impact the community and make this a growing sport on a larger scale, the better,” said Kimberly senior Jack Hruzek.
Fast pace. High stakes. Intense. Volleyball fans say that watching or playing this sport can be an adrenaline rush.
“(If) it’s match point, it feels like you’re in a completely different room,” Hruzek said.
According to a study by the Wall Street Journal, the number of boys playing volleyball has increased by 56% over the last decade.
“The all-girls college level for women has become more popular and it’s on ESPN, it’s on Bally Sports, it’s always on TV and I think the boys see that. We have a lot of great high school coaches in Wisconsin and they just create a really good atmosphere. culture of fun,” said assistant coach Kimberly Tara Krause, who played for UWGB.
Coach of the St. Men’s team Norbert, BJ Bryant, says the only form of men’s volleyball at the national level – outside of the Olympics – is mainly the NCAA Championships.
“This championship is amazing, but it’s one small window in the sports landscape and sports broadcast setup that you can get lost in,” he said.
Matt Seidl is an assistant at St. Norbert, as well as the head coach at Kimberly’s high school, says it all starts at the youth level.
“Just say, come to the gym, jump up and hit the ball hard,” he said. “And that’s what I do with younger kids to get them excited about sports. This is the first thing we do. We just run, jump high and hit the ball hard.”
Kimberly organizes youth camps in the summer, during which high school students interact with teenage people.
“It’s great fun to be exposed to the younger generation because they just inundate you and it’s really cool to share your knowledge with the younger generation to just help grow the sport,” Hruzek said.
While 36 states have sanctioned volleyball for high school boys, Wisconsin is one of only three where both players play in the fall. Bryant believes making it a spring sport will aid with development.
“In states like Illinois that have volleyball in the spring, a lot more schools sanction it,” he said. “I mean, we have just over 70 boys programs in the state right now. I think there are just over 200 boys high school teams in Illinois.”
While there is still a lot of work to be done when it comes to the development of boys volleyball, the sport has come a long way.
“When I was a freshman, there were only 15 people participating, and by my sophomore year that number increased to about 20, and the number has only grown since then,” Owen Krause said.
“The athleticism itself is the same, day and night, compared to 5-10 years ago. These boys and women are just incredible athletes,” Seidl said.
