By Dylan Reubenking / dylanr@chronline.com

The Ooms family is responsible for plenty of volleyball history at Rainier High School.

Carrie Ooms, the current head volleyball coach at RHS, was a member of the 1998 Mountaineers squad that was the first to ever win the district championship and earn a trip to the state tournament. 

Fast forward a quarter century and she has led the Mountaineers, along with her sophomore daughter Allyson, to back-to-back trophies at state, taking fourth in 2023 and fifth in 2024. Allyson has earned Central 2B All-League second team honors in back-to-back years to start her varsity career.

The duo have similar play styles and versatility on the court; each Ooms can rise up for a powerful kill and catch the defense off guard with a commanding serve. Allyson picked up volleyball at an earlier age than her mother, starting in fourth grade learning from high schoolers during camps before taking her first steps into organized volleyball in middle school. 

When Allyson was preparing to take the next step into high school varsity volleyball, Rainier was in need of a new head coach. She encouraged Carrie, who had coached Rainier’s middle school and high school team years ago, to apply.

“She was like, ‘Mom, I really want you to coach.’ I’m like, ‘Oh boy,’” Carrie said. “It’s a big step going from mom to coach, and it’s a big time commitment, too. I told her, ‘If it’s gonna ruin the mom-daughter relationship, it’s a no-go. So I applied for it, and I’m happy I did.”

Not many teenagers would want to see their mom for so many hours out of the day, but not Allyson. She credits her mom for exposing her to the game of volleyball at a young age and helping her fall in love with the sport.

“She was just helping me figure out the basics and what I need to do, and I just fell in love with playing it. I think she’s very knowledgeable, and it’s easier to get information or feedback from someone you’re close to rather than someone who’s just a random person,” Allyson said.

It wasn’t always easier for Allyson to take feedback from her mom, especially in front of her teammates and her coaches. Carrie recalls times during their first season together when her daughter would ask her why she was being so hard on her, but she would always tell her that she was just as hard on the other players.

Allyson and Carrie both acknowledged the difficulty during their first year of differentiating the family versus volleyball relationship. Allyson said if something went wrong her freshman year, she would often take it out on her mom and let her frustration get the best of her. But they agreed that the second year was much easier to transition back and forth.

“It’s definitely a big adjustment because it’s weird seeing her as a coach on the sidelines and not my mom on the sidelines and having to be able to not take feedback to heart,” Allyson said. “You have to make sure to flip that switch and realize that on the court, it’s coach, and off the court, it’s Mom. I learned how to balance it pretty well.”

Carrie said that during Allyson’s freshman year, her husband Edgar, who often works as a line judge during Allyson’s matches, would draw the line of volleyball discussion as soon as they got home from practice or matches. But Allyson’s sophomore year was a significant improvement in their dynamic and the team’s dynamic, Carrie said.

“I think this last year went a lot better. When kids are little, they’re like, ‘What do my parents know? It’s just Mom. How much could she really know?’” Carrie said. “Then as she got older, she started to realize that maybe Mom does know what she’s talking about. This last year was the best coaching and mom-daughter relationship. She could ask those questions, and that helped the other kids see that, ‘If Allyson can ask those questions, we can ask more questions, as well.’”

After her playing days at Rainier, Carrie was a star for Saint Martin’s University. According to the team’s record book, updated in 2019, she ranked eighth in the school’s history in career solo blocks. But the most significant block of her life came in 2013 when she discovered through a self examination that she had breast cancer. Edgar was working in Germany at the time, and their three children at the time were very young; Allyson was just 5 years old.

Carrie dropped off her images at Seattle Breast Center and returned the next day for a biopsy, where she was told by her doctor that she was 95% sure it was cancerous. Carrie called Edgar to come home immediately, and he did. The day after the biopsy, the results confirmed she had cancer, and a surgery was scheduled within a week and a half.

“They put a port in my chest for chemo. I went through the old style that I think they called the red plan of death,” Carrie said. “I did four treatments of that, and then I did an additional 12 weekly treatments of a lighter chemo. I was on a hormone blocker for four years and then had multiple surgeries in between. I also had 33 rounds of radiation. They hit it hard because I was so young and had no family history and was healthy.”

Allyson’s memories of her mother’s battle are fairly limited, but she remembers her strength during and after the fight. Carrie recounted telling their children that she was sick but tried not to say the word “cancer,” which Allyson didn’t specifically hear until her teachers at school mentioned it.

“I just remember her being gone quite a bit for her treatments and then when she had our hairstylist come shave all of her hair off,” Allyson recalls. “She’s very strong because it’s not easy to go through anything like that. It definitely says a lot about who she is.

On Valentine’s Day this year, Carrie celebrated 11 years cancer free. She said her battle, along with an emergency surgery on her back six years ago that developed into a staph infection, made her look at life differently.

“It changes you as a person. There are things that I take to heart more, but there are other things that I let go of a lot easier,” Carrie said. “Life is too short to hang on to the negative. I do what I want, and I used to be a yes person and try to please so many people. Now, I am there for me and my family first, and then whatever’s outside is my extra to give. I do still like to help others out, but again, family and my choices come first.”

Entering Allyson’s junior season in 2025, the Ooms family is ready to continue making Rainier history on the court and growing their bond on and off the court. In 2026, Allyson’s younger sister Isa may join the team as an eighth grader, adding to the family and program record book.

“It’s going to be exciting to see what happens with our program here in the next few years. This has definitely brought our relationship closer, and it helps the relationship on both sides,” Carrie said.

OREM — From the first day of preseason, Maple Mountain boys’ volleyball coach Napoleon Galang knew his team had something special.

The Golden Eagles weren’t just defending 5A champions from the first-ever UHSAA-sanctioned state tournament. They wanted to double their tally, too.

“They knew what they wanted,” Galang said, “and they worked so hard every day in practice for that.

“Our senior captain Manase is the best middle in the state. Taft is the best setter in the state. We have the two best freshmen in the state, and some of the best players in general in our program. And they support each other in whatever moment.”

It’s hard to argue against it.

BYU signee Trey Thornton had 17 kills, and Taft Hillman dished out 27 assists as top-rated Maple Mountain cruised to back-to-back 5A titles, 25-16, 25-15, 25-15, Saturday evening over Wasatch at the UCCU Center at Utah Valley University.

Matheus Borges added five kills and five block touches for the Golden Eagles (29-1), who capped a dominant follow-up campaign to last year’s inaugural sanctioned state title by not losing to an opponent from the state of Utah.

“That’s a credit to Taft; he runs a great offense. And our passing is the best in the state,” said Thornton, the 6-foot-6 outside hitter and opposite who also had offers from USC, Ohio State, Lewis, Pepperdine, UC San Diego and Penn State.

“Every single game, I think we out-perform in the passing category,” he added. “Having the pass in the set really sets up our offense to go hammer balls.”

Any good volleyball team’s standout hitting always starts with serve-receiving and passing, and the Golden Eagles were no different. But just how dominant was Maple Mountain, though?

The Eagles lost just nine total sets against in-state opponents, the last of which in a 3-1 win over Alta in Saturday’s semifinals. The lone loss came back on March 29, a 2-1 tournament setback to Windward from Los Angeles, California.

Since then, life’s been coming up Maple, including a perfect 12-0 ascension through Region 7 play and the No. 1 overall seed in the state tournament.

But it’s not just Thornton, who plays for BYU coach Shawn Olmstead with Club GSL in the summer.

Hillman, the 6-foot-7 setter who jokes who took up the position in sixth grade after playing with his dad and friends while being “the only one who couldn’t hit,” has become adept at finding openings.

That includes Thornton, who put down five kills from among Hillman’s eight assists as the Golden Eagles jumped out to a 16-8 advantage and never looked back.

But it also means distributing the ball from a back row that includes freshman McKay Beattie for Hillman to distribute to Thornton, Borges and middle hitter Manase Storey, who had four block touches, and the rest of the attack.

“Obviously, I’ve got to feed our big hitters, which are Manase and Trey,” Hillman said. “But every team is always so focused on them, and they don’t realize we have a lot of great weapons that are ready for every set.

“I’ll go to Manase and Trey a lot, but I know that my other hitters are ready and can put a ball down when I need them to.”

Hillman got it done on defense, too.

The 6-foot-7 junior recorded his second block of the match to lift Maple Mountain to an 11-7 advantage in the second set. The Eagles didn’t slow down until they won the second set, 25-15 on a service error.

Story gave Maple Mountain a dominant 18-8 lead in the third set, and Abe Hawkins and Thornton sealed the win with a block up the middle to give the Golden Eagles their first championship.

JJ Serre put down seven kills to lead Wasatch (21-9), which got 13 assists from Brody Hulme.

Madisen Noll stands on deck as Anna Sanders takes an at-bat against Tennessee State.

Lindenwood softball (24-25) season came to an end on Thursday after a heartbreaking loss to rival SEMO (26-18) by the score of 4-3. Lindenwood was one out away from knocking off their arch rival and eliminating them from the OVC tournament when the Redhawks rallied in the bottom of the seventh to win. 

Avery Wapp was once again brilliant for the first six innings before things unraveled in the seventh and she was tagged with the loss, finishing the season 9-9, as her final line read 6.2 innings, four runs on 10 hits, four walks and two strikeouts.  

Hanna Johaninng was once again the star at the plate going 3/3 with a double, an RBI and a run scored.  

SEMO got on the board first in the second as Gracie Luna tattooed a 0-0 delivery from Wapp for a solo homer to put the Redhawks up 1-0.  

The Lions offense would be kept quiet through the first five innings as Willow Van Haren only allowed two hits and a walk through the first five innings before the Lions finally struck in the sixth.  

After Van Haren retired the first two Lindenwood hitters in the sixth Jolie McMinn stepped up to the dish and whalloped a 1-1 pitch over the fence in left field tying the game at 1-1. The homer was McMinn’s sixth of the season. 

The bats stayed hot for Lindenwood in the top of the seventh. After Madison Noll flew out to open the inning, Dallis Darnell sparked the rally with a sharp single, putting the go-ahead run on base. That brought up Johanning, who delivered in the clutch, ripping a 2-1 fastball down the left field line for a stand-up double. Darnell raced around the bases, and a perfect relay from SEMO made it a bang-bang play at the plate. Initially called out, the play went to review, and the call was overturned, giving the Lions a 2-1 lead. 

Johanning advanced to third on a wild pitch, and Lauren Pelton stepped in and added to the momentum. On a 2-1 pitch, she laced an RBI single down the left field line to plate Johanning and give Lindenwood a crucial insurance run, pushing the lead to 3-1 heading into the bottom half. 

Just three outs away from moving on, the Lions turned to Wapp to close the door. She got the first batter to foul out to third, but SEMO wouldn’t go quietly. A double and a single put runners on the corners with one out. Hailey Burnett lifted a shallow fly to center for the second out, and Lindenwood stood one out away from advancing. 

Then came the collapse. 

Three straight singles from the Redhawks,including a heartbreaking blooper that dropped just inside the left field line — drove in three runs and handed SEMO a shocking 4-3 walk-off win. Johanning and Noll both converged on the final ball but neither made the play, and with it, Lindenwood’s season ended in dramatic, gut-wrenching fashion. 

The Lions will now return to St. Charles with a bitter taste in their mouths — but also a renewed fire. This tough ending could very well fuel next year’s campaign as they look to turn postseason heartbreak into motivation. 

COLUMBUS, Ohio – Big West champion and No. 2 seed Hawai’i couldn’t overcome the early firepower of third-seeded and defending champion UCLA, falling in the semifinal round of the 2025 National Collegiate Men’s Volleyball Championship at the Covelli Center on Saturday night.  

The Bruins improve their record to 22-6 on the season after sweeping the match with set scores of 25-14, 25-23, and 25-23. Meanwhile, UH closes their campaign at 27-6 in their return season to the national stage after a one-year hiatus.   

UCLA now advances to meet No. 1 seed Long Beach State in the championship, in a highly anticipated rematch of the 2024 finale. The Beach will be looking for their fourth title and a first since 2019, while UCLA is eyeing three straight victories to continue their dominant run. 

The Rainbow Warriors were led by freshman Adrien Roure’s 12 kills on .333 hitting with two service aces. Sophomore Tread Rosenthal tallied 19 assists to go along with five digs and four kills. Justin Todd added four blocks and a pair of kills in the loss. Statistically, the ’Bows were outhit .370 to .188 and outblocked 11 to four, and UCLA’s sweltering start proved too much to handle.  

The Rainbow Warriors opened up the match with the first point of the day off the hand of Finn Kearney and an ace for Roure set the score at 3-1. A notable run of eight consecutive points powered by Cooper Robinson on the serve handed the Bruins the 10-4 advantage and UCLA was able to keep stretching the lead. It was 18-9 after a block for Sean McQuiggan and Andrew Rowan, and Zach Rama’s strike off a Rowan assist finished the frame with a commanding 25-14 win.  

In the second, UH again eased uut to the 3-1 lead, but the Bruins got the next points three capped by an ace for Rowan to again edge out in front. A big out of system point after hustle dig for ‘Eloy Choy resulted in a kill for Roure to knot the frame at four apiece. A Kearney ace after a successful challenge by UH gave the ’Bows a 10-8 advantage, but the momentum was thwarted by five straight for the Bruins.  

UH kept fighting to knot the set at points 18 through 22 and a kill for Kainoa Wade off a Kearney pass put Hawai’i up 23-22. Unfortunately, that was their last point of the set as the frame ended 25-23 in favor of UCLA after Sean Kelley and McQuiggan finished it out with the denial at the net.  

UCLA led for the duration of the third set, but the ’Bows again fought to the final point, pulling within one at 22-21 after an ace for Roure was followed by kill for Louis Sakanoko. Back-to-back service errors followed to keep it a one-point margin but the Bruins scored the final two points on the court to win the frame. A UCLA red card after the action ended resulted in a final third-set score of 25-23.  

UCLA’s offense was paced by 13 kills on .435 hitting for Kelly and a 10-kill outing for Rama. Rowan recorded a match-best 34 assists with McQuiggan finishing the night with seven total blocks including two solo stuffs.  

The Bruins now play for their 22nd national championship in program history. UCLA has won the last two titles, after a 15-year drought.  

Meeting up with LBSU in the finals for consecutive seasons, 2025 will mark the third time since 2018 that the Beach and Bruins compete for the trophy. In 2018, LBSU came away with the five-set win at ULCA and last season’s four-setter was contested at Walter Pyramid. Monday will see a neutral site matchup between the two for the rubber match in recent history, since The Big West began sponsoring men’s volleyball. LBSU and UCLA also tussled for superiority once before, in 1970’s inaugural championship won by the Bruins. 

29 North Avenue — the small saltbox jutting into the sidewalk near Staples High School — is one of the most admired homes in Westport.

Now the entire state knows about it.

On Thursday owner Annette Norton received a Connecticut Preservation Award, for her loving rehabilitation of the c. 1820 Mills house.

At just 930 square feet of low-ceilinged space — and vacant through 7 years of bankruptcy proceedings — it could well have been another teardown.

But the Savvy + Grace owner, working with contractor Javier Pasato, restored, rehabilitated and preserved the historic dwelling. (And the adjacent 19th-century barn, too.)

Congratulations, Annette. Your dedication to Westport — both residential and retail — is greatly appreciated! (Hat tip: Bob Weingarten)

29 North Avenue, after restoration.

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Happy Mothers Day!

And Wreathing for Community — the non-profit that creates gorgeous wreaths, then gives them to non-profits and lucky residents — has a Mothers Day winner.

Pamela Tinoco nominated her mom.

Wreathing’s Faith Sargent says that Pamela’s mom’s “love, resilience and presence have left a lasting impression on her family. The nomination was heartfelt and full of admiration — a beautiful reminder of the quiet strength so many mothers carry. I’m honored to gift this wreath in her honor.”

Pamela Tinoco, her daughter and the wreath to be delivered to Pamela’s mom.

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No one wants to hear “DNR.”

Unless they playing.

Doctors know the initials stand for “Do Not Resuscitate.”

Music lovers know it stands for one of Fairfield County’s favorite rock bands.

And — surprise! — nearly all the musicians are physicians.

On Saturday, June 14 (7 p.m.), they take their show to the Westport Library. It’s a fundraiser, for the Library’s great community programming.

Get your tickets ($40) here. There is also a cash bar.

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Some Staples High School sports get more recognition than others.

In the spring, baseball and lacrosse are big.

But hundreds of other athletes play a dozen other sports.

One of the most overlooked is girls water polo.

Today Ryan Allen — the sophomore whose photos and videos of a variety of subjects have impressed many “06880” readers — gives it the attention it deserves.

He stopped by the pool the other day, and created this video. Game on!

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Speaking of swimming (sort of): The Westport Country Playhouse celebrates the 50th anniversary of “Jaws” on June 2 (7 p.m.).

The classic film will be shown, along with a talk and trivia before and after with artistic director Mark Shanahan. Get your tickets ($25) here.

Not scared? Want more? A Script in Hand play reading of “The Shark Is Broken” — a witty, revealing play about the making of the film (directed by Shanahan) is set for June 9 (7 p.m.). Monday, June 9, at 7 p.m. Get tickets and more information here.

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More than 5 dozen students were inducted into 6 Language Honor Societies recently. Felicidades to:

Società Onoraria Italica (Italian): Cooper Brundige, Sofia DiLeo, Uzi Greenman, Gabriel Hellmann, Carly Mulhern, Benjamin Peterson, Isabellal Pirkl, Myla Saperstein, Riley Sklar.

Delta Epsilon Phil (German): William Enquist, Thomas Nowak, Skye Selva, Matthewe Tybur.

Zhōngwén Róngyù Xuéhuì (Chinese): Danie Arava, Lila Boroujerdi, Ben Esser, Natalia Garment, Jay Hari, Miles Khan, Olivia Morgeson, Stella Nguyen, Olivia Saw, Rebecca Schachter, Rajan Sekhar, Andreson Seo, Brooke Shaughnessy, Michael Wang, Andersen Ye, Connor Yuan.

Associatonem Ad Promovendum Studium Latinum (Latin): Tanush Arora, Annie Bowman, Catherine Campagnino, Ava Carter, Samantha Hermus, Drew Hill, Nelly Kaminski, Olivia Kuliga, Mina Leon, Dhilan Patel, Jake Shufro, Sophie Smith, Oliver Vynerib.

Sociedad Honoraria Hispánica (Spanish): Isabel Alfageme, Emma Asiel, Kevin Cano, Sofia Donroe, Kate Finger, Owen Goldfarb, Abigail Kane, Christian Michaels, Sydney Minervini, Sophia Novello, Devyn Peffer, Rei Seltzer, Taylor Serotta, Isabelle Wasserman.

Société Honoraire de Français (French): Kate Bulkeley, Penelope Eisenberger, Gunnar Eklund, Andi Jacobs, Isabel Jo, Souleye Kebe, Graysen Peters, Daniella Sacchetti, Maria Stiber.

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You may not have heard of the “J vs. K Book Tour.”

But your kid sure has.

The other day, it took the Library by storm. Best-selling authors and Newbery Award winners Kwame Alexander (“The Crossover”) and Jerry Craft (“New Kid”) took over the Trefz Forum to celebrate comics, creativity, and the magic of collaboration.

“J vs. K” is the latest book project from Alexander and Craft. The illustrated story features 2 talented 5th graders — one a writer, the other a drawer — going head to head in a creative competition for the ages.

As part of the book launch, the writers are traveling the country in a special van, talking to elementary and middle school students.

The crowd of 300 at the Library came from Dunbar School in Bridgeport, ESL students from Central High School in Bridgeport, Marvin Elementary in Norwalk, and Wooster Middle School in Stratford.

The J vs. K Tour comes to the Library.

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The public is invited to the Westport Police Department’s promotional ceremony (May 23, 4 p.m., Town Hall auditorium).

David Farrell will be sworn in as police chief. Also on stage for promotions: deputy chief David Wolf, captains Jillian Cabana and Eric Woods, and detective Rachel Hall.

Westport’s next police chief: David Farrell.

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Jack Krayson opened his pool opened on Friday.

It will be cleaned tomorrow.

In the meantime, it’s the perfect algae-ridden environment for this guy.

And his photo is the perfect image for today’s “Westport … Naturally” feature.

(Photo/Jack Krayson)

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And finally … Johnny Rodriguez — one of country music’s first Hispanic stars — died Friday, at 73. Here’s his obituary. (Hat tip: Amy Schneider)

(Happy Mothers Day, to all who celebrate. To celebrate my late mother, or my 2 sisters who are great mothers, please support their son/brother’s blog by making a contribution here. Thank you!)