CRESWELL – Boys volleyball is thriving in its fourth season, with participation and team numbers skyrocketing, more advanced teams, and a higher level of competition.
It’s no surprise that the Creswell Bulldogs, led by Anna Baltrusch –who has led generations of Bulldog volleyball players in her 31-year tenure – are among the best – 14-1 and ranked 17th among 1A-6A teams.
“Creswell volleyball is still that great,” Baltrusch laughed. All jokes aside, Baltrusch attributed their record and dominance to more experience and playing time than the other area teams. The Bulldogs were the original pioneers in boys volleyball’s inception in the Southern Willamette Valley and are in their third year.
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The Bulldogs ended their regular season by whipping Class 4A Philomath 3-1 last Thursday. They then faced the 6A Thurston Colts for one set before cancelling.
Increased competition
The No. 28 Colts (5-8), in their second season, are coached by Hannah Adams. Adams noted there’s more county competition now, and cited the difference in infrastructure and accessibility in the rural areas of Lane County as a challenge.
“I think it’s been harder for us this year,” she said. “Last season, we played only locally – we played a lot of teams that weren’t as advanced as they are this season. We didn’t get to see Portland competition until this year, and it was rough. Those boys have been playing club volleyball forever up there.
“So last year was definitely a little bit easier than this year. They’ve realized they need to fight for it a lot more. And they’re not used to doing that,” she said.
According to the Oregon School Activities Association (OSAA), from its inception in the spring of 2022 with five teams, there are now 68 teams and 974 players. The sport was recognized as an “emerging activity” last year. And now that its second season as an “emerging activity” has produced successful numbers, boys volleyball is eligible “to become an officially sanctioned sport when the OSAA delegate assembly votes on it in October.”
Factors that go into the vote are a 50-school participation threshold (which has been achieved), the impact of participation in other sports, budget, and staff workload.
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For example, Baltrusch shared that a difference in boys volleyball she appreciated is the balance and flexibility it offered. Because it is a volunteer role, there is less “pressure,” which would change if it were a full varsity sport. She also mentioned the levity of alternating responsibilities with assistant coach Hannah Layman.
“It’s nice to coach them together,” Baltrusch said. “Sometimes she (Layman) does practice, sometimes I do practice. She does games when I’m out of town. I do games when she’s out of town. There’s a lot of switching off.”
Boys volleyball will be playing its third state championship May 22-25 in the Olympus Sports Center at Hillsboro. In the 2024 season, boys volleyball had state championship brackets for Classes 6A, 5A/4A, and then 3A/2A/1A. Clackamas, Summit and St. Mary’s of Medford took those titles, respectively. In 2025, there will be enough championship brackets for 6A, 5A, 4A and a combined 3A/2A/1A. Creswell is positioned for a No. 4 seed in 3A/2A/1A and Thurston is a No. 7 seed, which Adams said, despite all the changes this year, is “right around the seed they were last year.” Creswell took fourth in last year’s state championship and earned the “sportsmanship” title. Cameron Gallegos received first-team all-state honors and Ace Arnold received all-state honorable mention.
Gender in sports
When asked about the difference in coaching both teams, Adams found the biggest highlight is the intense masculinity at play.
She has been the Thurston girls JV coach for four years and has been coaching for seven years overall. “I think it’s a lot more competitive, and there’s more anger than with the girls. But I think it’s good. I think it’s good for the boys to find something different to do – and they’re super interested in it. They fight for it, and I think it’s fun. I get super into it too on the sideline with them.”
CRAIG STROBECK / THE CHRONICLE
Adams also said there’s usually some hesitancy at first, that then settles into a curiosity and then an eager challenge.
“I will say, they think it’s so weird at first,” Adams said. “But eventually they’re like, ‘This is really hard and it’s so cool!’ And I’m like, ‘Yeah, dude, you just hit the ball.’”
Baltrusch said the team chemistry dynamics are different. She’s found that there’s been more conflict with her girls team. However, coordination with the boys is still a challenge as the players are changing each year.
Up next
Regardless of what OSAA votes in October, Adams’ hope for the boys program is that it will continue to separate from the girls team. She also hopes there will be enough numbers next year for a JV team.
“I have five kids who could really be on JV and use those reps, and it could be fun for them,” she said. “So I’m hoping to build it in that aspect. Also, another thing is that I share a bunch of (equipment) with the girls program.
“I hope that I eventually have my own stuff, and I don’t have to constantly ask permission to use theirs. I want it to grow enough so that we can just have our own equipment and still support the girls. And girls still support us! But it’d be cool for it to be just ‘boys volleyball,’” she said.
Similar to Adams, Baltrusch’s team is made up of a majority of seniors. Baltrusch hopes that she can continue to cycle in more players as boys volleyball continues to grow. Especially with graduation looming.
