Beginning this year, Centennial High School will be having their first all-males volleyball team. Treyson Komoda acts as the head player, and is in charge of coordinating the locations and the club itself. “As of right now, the club leader would be me, but where we’re taking place is still in the works.”

“As of right now, our current adviser that was supposed to advise us had to leave us because of surgery in her back she had to take care of,” said Komoda. “I was thinking [someone] outside of school, but if they can’t help us then I’ll have to resort to inside of the school. I have a few people in mind, but hopefully I’ll be able to work it out with them.”

According to him, the plan for a majority male volleyball team originated from the, “overall thought of not having one.” It came to his attention that there has not been a dedicated team added for males at this school, and the absence motivated him to create one.

Seeing news and coverage on female volleyball teams for years on end at this school, it’s refreshing to see males get the limelight. The girls volleyball season closing in the fall gives the new club its own chance to shine. Even as a young kid who would only view volleyball as a female centered sport, it’s been great to have the sport being given representation so that all genders can play it. I do wish however, that this club was created sooner rather than later. If you’ve read any of my previous articles, you’d know that I spent the majority of my early elementary school career on a soccer team, and spent a semester in fourth grade on a basketball team. Both of these incidents ended up proving to be valueless to me, and while they’re great sports that are worthwhile for other people, they were all together not the best fit for me when it came to physical activities. I’ve since used the intrigue of a new club as an opportunity for myself to join team sports.

A few days into the new school year, I had an exchange with Laura Scully, our Assistant Principal after she spotted me reading a manga. The conversation slowly evolved from Japanese comics to Haikyuu, a popular series following an all-males high school volleyball team as they compete in tournaments around their prefecture. Students around the school, according to her, have asked non-stop to have a male-centered volleyball team started. After all this time of endless asking to the administration here at CHS, it’s great from the perspective of a CHS student that the student body can hold the power to start something impactful.

Although I’m a Senior and I’ll only get a few months to play the sport before my graduation, I’d like to set a precedent for future classes to come. As of the time of writing this, the club is not in session due to the school limiting after school curriculars, but they’re due to start soon with their ventures.

The lack of male volleyball teams in Portland school districts means there’s no dedicated tournaments in the city. Because of this, these after school gatherings would be categorized as a club rather than a sincere sport. As a means of compromising, the original plan was to host unofficial matches between other schools. And as the idea gradually came to fruition, it was decided that the club would be hosted at the Boys and Girls Club in Rockwood.

Currently, there are 14 students signed up for the club. Komoda did state that the closing dates for signups have not yet been decided, but for anyone reading is interested, I’d personally guide them to contact the related email, [email protected]

Going forwards, Komoda wants to, “be able to have fun and maybe play against other clubs.” Alongside that, he wishes the individual members can have fun and make new friends. Although the district has a ban on after-school activities due to the rising numbers on COVID, he believes the scope of the club is one that’s able to expand for years to come.