The thumping sound of sneakers on hardwood now echoes from the Troy High School gym for a new reason. The school’s first ever Boy’s Volleyball Team has officially taken the court this spring. The team, after years of advocacy from the Troy High School Volleyball Club, signals a milestone that started as a student initiative, which has now successfully grown into a fully fledged varsity team. “It’s actually crazy how I got in,” junior Amrit Krishna said. “I started jumping in the locker room. That’s how happy I was.” The formation of the team, however, did not happen overnight. For the past few years, the members of the volleyball club had talked about a team. The idea of officially starting one, has been floating around for a while now. This year, that same passion and energy, driven by the senior board members, Faris Abulaban, Arya Santhosh Kumar, Jason Cui, Luke Kim and Lilly Martin, turned into a well coordinated effort to make it happen. “This year is our senior year and we really just wanted one more chance to play before we go to college,” said Abulaban. “Most colleges don’t have a men’s team, or they’re super competitive. We wanted to play before it was too late.”
Sophomore Pranav Dsilva also mentioned the larger group of volleyball club board members that helped with the process of creating the team. “They got it going,” said Dsilva. The junior board members also played a key role in keeping the club active, recruiting new members and increasing participation. These actions by the board and members of the club, helped show much student interest to the school administration.
Still, there were many logistical hurdles. Such as waiting for the administration to approve the team and “waiting for them to find a coach,” said Abulaban. In the previous years, the students would go to Avondale High School and play with their team and attend practice in an informal manner. Highlighting and giving more emphasis to the demand and necessity for a boy’s team at Troy High School. “We had to have enough student participants, we had to get recommendations and we had to wait for a coach,” said freshman Darshith Geepalem. The wait for the team to get a coach was long, but eventually, the school found Coach Jack Kitchner, who brought both experience and enthusiasm to the team. “Thrilled would be one word,” Kitchener said. “I’ve wanted to get a boys volleyball team going since I was in high school and I’m very excited to finally be able to build this up here.”
The tryout process lasted three days. When asked about what they were looking for during tryouts, Kitchener responded saying, “As much as we looked for skill and playing adaptation, we also looked for attitude on and off the court.” A good attitude can take you a long way when playing a sport. “The first day was drills and stamina training,” Dsilva said. “Second day was focused more on techniques while playing and the last day was scrimmages in a more competitive environment against each other.” Each day was a different set of trials where the coaches were better able to understand what type of players each person was and what skills they brought to the team. Kumar also stated that the tryouts were held in a way that “everyone got a chance to show their skills and that it was a fair process.”
Despite the nerves and the competitiveness, the players all said that the atmosphere during tryouts was very encouraging.
The team is now well into their first ever competitive season, and the early practices have already helped build up the teams chemistry and confidence. Krishna said that “being a part of the team has helped me make more friends,” while Geepalem said that he has noticed a “growth in team communication and strategy.” Kitchener has also expressed his happiness and satisfaction with the team. “ We’re just going to keep grinding from here.”
The seniors, while aware that their time on the court may be limited, have already succeeded in something bigger than just their final season. They’ve created a foundation for years to come. “This has to be permanent,” said Dsilva. “The seniors really did something amazing.” Kitchner hopes to lead the program into the future, but he’s quick to acknowledge the group that made it all possible. “This is only the beginning,” Kitchner said. “Let’s keep it going.”
With regionals in sight and ambitions growing, the seniors have done more than just secure a season. They’ve written the first chapter of a story that future players will continue. For them, seeing the team come together wasn’t just a personal goal, it was about leaving behind a lasting impact.
A legacy built not just on spikes and serve but on vision, leadership, and determination.
