SPOKANE, Wash. – Girls volleyball is one of the most competitive, popular sports for female athletes across American high schools, but the lesser-known boys’ side of the sport quickly grows in Washington.
“I never would have imagined my senior year, I’d be playing Ferris in that rivalry game,” Lewis and Clark senior Sonny Naipo said.
The rivalry earned a unique chapter in the first-ever ‘South Hill Scramble’ held tonight between LC and Ferris High School, and both intramural teams showed passion for what the future could hold.
“Our teammates, our classmates, are coming out to support us,” Naipo said. “People didn’t know it was going on, and now it’s an option for boys. So, I’m really excited.”
Naipo comes from a long line of volleyball greats at Eastern Washington, and he organized the student-driven event to help grow the sport.
“When I structured it, I was trying to make it the most inclusive and welcoming community,” Naipo said. “So everybody was going to have a good experience. Everybody was going to learn somebody’s name. And you know, boys’ volleyball is an outsider sport. So these are guys who have never done it before. They’re learning for the first time. So the community is really rallying behind them, going, ‘This is an incredible experience.’ You know we can build off of that.”
Lewis and Clark athletic director Crystal Medina sees this growth across the school, welcoming new players to the sport who may not have considered it before.
“On the first day of practice, I met a football player who said, ‘If boys’ volleyball was a fall sport, I’d quit to play,'” Medina said. “So, there’s people who have never played. There’s people who have very little skill level who have played. I think because it’s a sport where you can develop a lot of skills. It’s been very popular with the boys, and honestly, it’s a lot of excitement as well because the games are really fun to watch.”
Oregon already has boys’ volleyball as a full varsity sport, and Naipo added his urge to see the same status here in Washington by extending this rivalry to a yearly event.
“We have a lot of interest here in Spokane,” Naipo said. “Next year, I hope to see all the same faces.”
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