They live in obscurity. They pay their own way. They share the gym in which they practice with cheerleaders. The floor in that shared gym? Yeah, it creaks when they jump on it. They don’t answer to anyone.
They just play. They just play well. Well enough to make the last two national tournaments. Well enough to be going back this year, this time in Dallas.
You have probably never heard of the men’s club volleyball team. Most people haven’t. That’s perfectly fine with them. Those who have lost to them, like 11th-ranked Cincinnati and 19th-ranked UW-Platteville, among others, could tell you a lot about this group of men, coached by former BG volleyball standout Kris Pesorda. They could tell you that these guys, simply put, can play.
“This team and the situation we have here is ideal,” said junior middle hitter John Young. “It’s very rewarding and exciting to play club. We don’t have a lot of pressure on ourselves, but there’s still plenty of rewards for us, like going to nationals.”
The national tournament, sponsored by the National Intramural-Recreational Sports Association (NIRSA), is held every year in a major U.S. city. Last year it was held in Kansas City, Mo., and the year before it was in Reno, Nev. The top 25-ranked teams in each division are invited to play each year in the tournament; being in the top 25 ensures a team a spot in the 64-team field. Bowling Green is currently ranked No. 22 in the latest NIRSA Division II rankings, sporting a 24-7 record on the year.
The team has also played No. 1-ranked Milwaukee Area Technical College, No. 3 Lakeland-Wisconsin and No. 6 Dayton this season, each of which resulted in narrow defeats.
“We want to go down there this year and put on a better showing,” Young said. “We played pretty poorly last year, and we want to earn it this year. We’re going back this year with the mentality of not taking anything for granted.”
BG is looking for redemption from, like Young said, a disappointing finish last season. They had been ranked as high as seventh in the nation in Division II, but finished ranked 33rd at the end of the season.
Problems galore
Yes, club sports are an entirely different entity than intercollegiate varsity athletics. No, that doesn’t mean they don’t face the same problems. Two weeks ago, the team’s setter, Jason Clugston, dislocated his shoulder and is out for the remainder of the year.
Sean Huiet, the squad’s backup setter and a capable replacement, will start in his place in Dallas.
“This is what is good about a club team and our team in general,” said junior Denny Palmer, the team’s president. “We always have a fallback plan, and we can trust the next guy stepping up if we have an injury. Sean has a lot of experience, and we all feel comfortable with him. He’s been on the court for a while, so he’s not just coming in cold. And he’s a great setter.”
“We won’t lose anything with me out there,” said Huiet, a senior on the team. Huiet is also an assistant coach for the women’s varsity team that went 21-8 this past fall. “I like to think I can motivate these guys a lot. … Maybe the only difference is that Jason is bigger, so he puts up a bigger blocker than I can. It will just be a different atmosphere with me out there rather than Jason.”
The injury to their setter is perhaps the least of these guys’ worries. Club sports receive nothing from the University, other than its good wishes. Thus, fund raising becomes an issue, along with travel. The team raises its own money, whether it is through working varsity games to earn money or selling items on their own. It was estimated that this year, the team will spend $3,000 on flights alone, as well as the travel to tournaments like the Midwest Intercollegiate Volleyball Association (MIVA) Championships, which will be held this weekend at Michigan State University.
“It’s definitely tough on us raising our own money, but it’s something that we have to do,” Huiet said. “That’s the main difference between us and, say, a women’s varsity volleyball team, that we receive no aid from the University.”
The championships will feature the top six teams from MIVA, including BG, Ohio Northern (currently ranked 14th), Dayton, Cincinnati (Bearcats have been ranked as high as third this season), Miami of Ohio and Toledo.
Tight-knit group
Perhaps why the team has been so successful in recent years is the solidarity that the group holds. With the difficulty of raising funds, getting to tournaments and playing well in those tournaments all at the same time, the squad has no time to not get along.
“I don’t think anyone on the team wants to let anyone else down,” Palmer said. “Yeah, this is a fun thing, but everyone wants to win at the same time, and everyone does their best to ensure that. “When we go away to a tournament or something and stay in hotels, we have seven guys in a room most times. Plus, we are paying out of our own pocket, so there’s definitely a trust factor between the guys. We just want to and like to play.”
Maybe that’s why they’re willing to pay: Because they just love to play.
