Volleyball

[Giver]

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I was quite inspired by my friend Amber(AGFire2013) and her passion for rowing..
So therefor, I decided to create a thread about my passion for volleyball.

I have been playing volleyball for almost a year now, I know that doesn't sound like much, but that sentence describes my experience with volleyball throughout my life very poorly actually..
I have been around volleyball ever since I can remember, really. From the time I was 5 years old I have been watching my two sisters play. I watched them go from very boring, uneventful, recreation volleyball, up until they played international club volleyball. I remember from the first time I saw them playing, I knew that this was the sport I wanted to play, but I never thought I could because I was always told it was a "girls" sport. I remember trying to pick up a volleyball and play literally every chance I got, whether it was during their practices, at their games, or while they were peppering(passing the ball back and forth) with each other at home. Of course I was always turned down and told to go practice baseball(which was the sport I played back then) or something. But I still never gave in and kept on trying to play every chance I got.
I had the mindset that I would never be able to play volleyball and would always be stuck being unhappy playing baseball until I just ended up not making a team or something for my entire sports career.
Then, the high school baseball season of my freshman year(year 9), I decided after the 3rd pre-tryout that I was done playing baseball for good. I told my parents, and while they were disappointed, they understood that I was not happy while playing.
I stopped playing sports for a good year, I lost a lot of weight, got very out of shape, unsocialized, and depressed.
But then, after my sisters had both graduated and were done playing volleyball, I went to watch them coach. (They are now coaching by the way.)
I looked over to the other courts in the complex that my sister was coaching at and saw that there was a team with girls and guys on it.
After we went home I looked into it, I saw that there were co-ed volleyball leagues, guys and girls welcome. I then talked to my mom about it and convinced her to let me see if there were any openings in the upcoming season for co-ed volleyball. The season started getting closer and closer and the idea had kinda faded from our minds, but one day I mentioned it to my mom and she emailed the coordinator for the volleyball league. After about a week and a half he replied, by pure fate a spot had opened up for a team looking for a homeschooled guy who was looking to play volleyball, which was EXACTLY what I was.
She emailed him back and said yes, got me registered, and after 2 weeks of waiting my first practice had arrived! My team wasn't all that good, but I didn't care.. I was just happy to be playing actual volleyball for the first time.
That season of volleyball changed my life, I learned a TON about how volleyball is actually played when you are really playing it, I improved so much in my volleyball skills, and ended up meeting my best friend to this day while on that team.
My life has changed tremendously since that day that I decided to finally tell my mom what I really wanted to do.
I now play club volleyball for the top club organization in the North Texas Region, while boys volleyball is still very new in this area of the U.S. I still am beyond happy that I am able to play the sport I love most of all. I am finally happy and doing what I have always wanted to do.
And now, in just a few weeks, I will be going to Colombus, OH to play in the Boys National Volleyball Championships!
I can't believe how far I have come sense the first time I ever watched my sisters play volleyball, just being dragged to their games for years and years, bored out of my mind, but then because of that, I found the thing in life I love to do the most...

And that right there everyone, is my story of how my life became completely overwhelmed with volleyball.

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Share your sports stories down below, whether it be volleyball, soccer, football, baseball, etc.
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[AGFire2013]

<33333
I love seeing people passionate about their sport, and I love it more when they get what they deserve for their hard work. In this case, it's nationals for you c:
Boys' volleyball should be more common. In my school it's only for girls, which is a pity because the girls' program has had a lot of success and I'm sure a boys program would be too (though most boys would be too busy rowing lel)
But I'm so happy you made it to such an important competition, good luck <33

 

[P3num6ra]

I started playing basketball since 6th grade, where we all came running out of the school to the court in the back next to the playgrounds. We had amazing full court shots and 4 hour playtimes. There was like 12 of us everyday.

I play baseball, too.

 

[Giver]

<33333
I love seeing people passionate about their sport, and I love it more when they get what they deserve for their hard work. In this case, it's nationals for you c:
Boys' volleyball should be more common. In my school it's only for girls, which is a pity because the girls' program has had a lot of success and I'm sure a boys program would be too (though most boys would be too busy rowing lel)
But I'm so happy you made it to such an important competition, good luck <33

I hope one day it becomes a regular sport to have at schools!
And thank you so much, Amber.

 

[Ideal]

Firstly, I loved reading this thread, and good luck at the championships!

My sport falls under the other category, which is wrestling. Ever since I can remember, I have been wrestling. I was practically born into wrestling, as my dad and brother were very good wrestlers. All through elementary school, I participated in freestyle clubs, and wrestled through middle school. I truly love the sport, no matter how hard it is at times. I am wrestling all 4 years in high school, but there is some pressure to always win. Being that my dad and brother were so good, it is hard to fill both their expectations. Luckily, with my experience, I have been doing very well, and my main goal is going to state.

 

[Giver]

Firstly, I loved reading this thread, and good luck at the championships!

My sport falls under the other category, which is wrestling. Ever since I can remember, I have been wrestling. I was practically born into wrestling, as my dad and brother were very good wrestlers. All through elementary school, I participated in freestyle clubs, and wrestled through middle school. I truly love the sport, no matter how hard it is at times. I am wrestling all 4 years in high school, but there is some pressure to always win. Being that my dad and brother were so good, it is hard to fill both their expectations. Luckily, with my experience, I have been doing very well, and my main goal is going to state.

Great story, I love that you are carrying on the family tradition and that you love doing it. And good luck with making it to state!!

 

[Sebastian]

The sport I personally love to play is basketball. I have been playing that sport for about four years or so. Can't really remember when I exactly played it. Although, I still love playing basketball today.

 

[Triping]

I play football basketball and also golf C:

 

[Pearlyyy]

I always got picked last in all the team sports so I don't play many.... ;-;

But seriously, I love playing volleyball too. It's one of those things were I didn't like so much at first but then later I turned out to love. Shhh it's mainly because my whole primary school played it so I was forced too. But then as I transitioned onto high school, the school didn't really encourage volleyball anymore and everyone just started to play soccer because of Fifa. I didn't really like so I didn't join in.

Not that big of a story, just wanted to say that Volleyball is a great sport that I wished was encouraged more ^_^

 

[AGFire2013]

I forgot to post my sports story
I've been rowing for about 7 months now, at one of the top rowing clubs in Canada.
A week after arriving in my boarding school, we were given arts options. We have arts days on Monday, Wednesdays and Fridays while sports are on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. Rowing, strangely, is on an Arts day.

Rowing is huge at my school. Everyday, at least once every hour you hear someone mentioning our yearly regatta (which is actually happening this weekend) or how their last practice went. It's a part of our culture; our daily lives. I was curious about this sport and decided to join it.
Rowing amazed me. It was painful, and I felt and learned what teamwork was like. Every rowing day, just hopping into a boat you have to be in rhythm, you have to go at the same rate. Your teammates become comrades, people who share the love and burden of rowing, who support you and work you hard to improve your rowing.

Truthfully, I wasn't expecting it to be as hard as it is. I had been in competitive and hard sports before, but I can honestly say that rowing is the hardest sport I have ever done. It's especially tough for me because I'm the shortest person on the team and around 2-4 years younger than all the other people on the junior team. I have bad knee injuries, where they start to swell up after practice and I can barely walk without burning pain. You need mental toughness, incredible physical endurance and fitness, and most importantly a passion and love for the sport. A will that'll get you to go to the gym to practice just a little bit more, wake up early in the morning, pull just a little bit harder on your stroke even though you're pulling your hardest, or just endure the pain for your love of rowing.

My first 2k erg test was full of pain. Probably the hardest thing I'd ever done in rowing. An erg test is where you hop on a rowing machine and row as fast and hard as you can under a set distance, and the feeling is like sprinting at full speed lifting 100lbs weights without water for 7-10 minutes, depending on how fast you are. Naturally, I threw up at the end of the race.

Fast forward to my school's first club regatta. I wasn't selected; I was crushed and disappointed with myself. Even though I spent the day alternating between being mad at myself, sad or just downright depressed, I used it as motivation and swore to myself that I would be selected for the next regatta. After weeks of extra workouts, long talks with coaches and my knee injuries, I made it. It was the happiest and best moment of my year. I raced in that regatta and savoured every moment of it. And now I'm going into my school's famous international regatta, the largest high school regatta in the whole of North America.

Rowing has brought out a new determination and sense of motivation I had never felt before. I practice as much as I can, I row through the huge pain that my knees bring, I work as hard as I can to shave off seconds from my erg times. I've improved my time by 5 minutes since December, my technique is improving rapidly, I work myself as hard as I can.

One day, I'll make it to nationals c:

 

[Holiday]

I've played all of the basic sports that you can think of (baseball, basketball, soccer, swimming, etc.) and while I'm fairly decent at them, I found tennis to be very fascinating and stand out from all the other ones. Ever since 7th grade, I have been playing it and although I'm not the best, I'm getting there. I really wish I could have played volleyball more, but they don't offer it at my school! I love playing it whenever I have the chance, though.

 

[Twee]

I played soccer for 10 years, then tried out cross country and fell in love with running c: