For the first time in decades, the Pinewood athletics program is spiking up excitement with the addition of a boys volleyball team that will be competing this spring sports season. The team offers students a unique opportunity to compete and connect with this brand new sport at Pinewood.
Working closely with Upper Campus Athletic Director Matt Stimson, sophomore Sean Sirhan, junior Jerry Yan, and junior Mailey Wang worked together in a long, collective effort to make their vision of a Pinewood boys volleyball team a reality. For Sirhan, his vision for the formation of this team has been brewing in his mind for a long time, and he’s excited that it’s finally coming to fruition.
“It’s been my dream since seventh grade,” Sirhan said. “I haven’t played a Pinewood sport in all 11 years that I’ve been here, so I’m excited to finally be able to represent the school.”
At the beginning of the school year, Sirhan, Yan, and Wang co-founded the Pinewood Volleyball Club. The purpose of the club was not only for students to have fun playing volleyball at lunch every week, but also to test the waters in terms of the level of interest there was for a boys volleyball team. The club was a whopping success, garnering a total of 80 signups.
“I needed to prove to Mr. Stimson that there was enough interest to make a team,” Sirhan said. “[Volleyball Club] is the biggest reason why we can get a team because it showed everyone how fun volleyball can be and just overall helped us get the word out.”
Stimson was happy to see the level of interest increase for a potential boys volleyball team, and he was eager to give the green light for the creation of the team.
“The team has been something that some of the students have been pushing for a while, and I think we finally have generated enough interest to make it a go this year,” Stimson said.
Practices will begin this spring season. In order to accommodate students who have an interest in playing volleyball but don’t want to miss out on the other spring sports, volleyball practices will be held twice a week with a regular starting time of 4:45 p.m. Stimson hopes this setup increases participation and avoids conflicting practice times for anyone participating in baseball, tennis, or track and field.
Yan, who has also been wanting to form a team for quite some time, is thrilled to hit the ground running this spring.
“I’m really looking forward to seeing this new team grow together,” Yan said. “I hope that by the end of the season, we can feel like a legitimate team and be proud to represent Pinewood.”
Sirhan is optimistic about what the future can hold for this new program.
“Hopefully, the boys volleyball team will be a team that continues to thrive even after Jerry and I graduate,” Sirhan said. “I hope we’ll be able to hang up a banner in the gym one day.”
