FORT WAYNE, Ind. (WFFT) – When high school boys volleyball first arrived in Indiana around 30 years ago, Fort Wayne area schools enjoyed a few early years of success. Huntington North defeated Concordia Lutheran for the inaugural state championship in the 1994 Indiana Boys Volleyball Coaches Association (I.B.V.C.A.) tournament. Snider and Carroll both claimed state titles in the years that followed.
But by the turn of the 21st century, other parts of the state had caught up and even surpassed the programs from Northeast Indiana. The Indianapolis metropolitan area emerged as the state’s dominant volleyball region, with the area’s success continuing to this day. Northwest Indiana has also seen a few state champions over the years, but Northeast Indiana largely faded into obscurity and many local programs discontinued boys volleyball by the end of the 2000’s.
By 2010, the IBVCA had 25 members with Columbia City as the sole representative from Northeast Indiana. The association grew slowly over the next decade, boasting 35 members by 2021. Despite the growth, very few Northeast Indiana schools had a team in competition.
Then, the sport saw a great boom.
THE REBIRTH OF FORT WAYNE BOYS VOLLEYBALL
From 2021 to 2023, IBVCA membership doubled to 70 teams. The IHSAA identified boys volleyball as an emerging sport, and many local schools saw this as an opportunity to create or re-establish a program.
One of those schools was Homestead. The Spartans had interest from a few dozen students right from the start, but few of those athletes brought much volleyball experience. Homestead head coach Jacob Allred explains that the Spartans “had to teach from ground one. We had really athletic guys, but they didn’t know any of the volleyball stuff in the beginning.”
As a result, Homestead found themselves recruiting athletes who were veterans in other sports. The Carroll Chargers had a similar experience, with head coach Dawn Potter noting the majority of her senior class were originally soccer players. One of those players, senior libero Isaiah Trulock, says that soccer is “the ultimate team sport,” and his experience has allowed him to excel in another sport that also involves plenty of teamwork and communication. Coach Potter says that her squad has done a great job of supporting each other, pushing each other, and “build(ing) people up when they’re struggling.”
Homestead and Carroll are two examples of local schools who have taken inexperienced athletes and quickly developed them into skilled players. Not only are these players able to compete on the state level, but they are also recruiting new members and coaching younger players. Allred says that “it’s almost like I have 8 different coaches” on his Homestead squad, doting on his senior’s effort to grow the program.
NOT JUST A GIRLS SPORT
From 2023 to 2025, boys volleyball participation doubled yet again.
The state of Indiana now has 137 boys volleyball teams in competition, and the vast majority of these schools participated in this season’s inaugural IHSAA boys volleyball state championship tournament.
The recent growth of the sport both locally and statewide is helping battle the stigma of volleyball being a sport primarily for girls. Huntington University men’s volleyball head coach Scott Vanover says the sport is “not as easy as it looks,” and says that his guys often get hooked after they first get their feet wet.
Vanover says that “once people get out there – once they are brave enough – they’re just like, “yes! Absolutely, yes.” and then, they want to get good!”
LOOKING TO THE FUTURE
For schools like Carroll and Homestead, next year’s senior class will come in with four years of competition under their belt.
This will make them the most experienced class yet, but some programs are concerned that they may hit a plateau without the development of younger players. “We need to get more with the middle school, and try to get them involved too,” Carroll’s Coach Potter explains.
Some local schools are already eyeing this, including Maple Creek Middle School assistant principal Scott Bushong. After holding a middle school camp last year, Bushong says he hopes to offer a similar opportunity this year. “The population that is most ripe for being volleyball players are guys who, maybe basketball has been their sport all up through and then they reach a point where they’re like, ‘I’m kind of done playing basketball’,” Bushong explains.“I know there’s a couple kids walking the halls, a couple 8th grade boys who have been to some of the high school games, and I’ll talk to them about it like, ‘hey, you ever thought about that?’ Just planting that seed.”
