Boys Volleyball: Day 1 was a powerful day of history

Making history created ever-present smiles, enthusiasm and positivity to all involved in Day 1 of the inaugural Minnesota State High School League Boys Volleyball State Tournament on Tuesday, June 10 at Schoenecker Arena on the University of St. Thomas Campus. 

From goosebumps during the National Anthem to the excitement generated by public address announcer Jane Voss to the thrilling intensity and drama of nail-biting matches, this banner day belonged to the Boys Volleyball community. Win or lose, this was a historic day. 

The journey for Boys Volleyball in becoming a League-sanctioned activity included approval in December of 2022 as an emerging activity. On May 9, 2023, the momentum continued when Minnesota became the 25^th state association in the nation to sanction Boys Volleyball after the 48-member Representative Assembly approved a Bylaw Amendment to include the activity with the League’s vast menu of opportunities. The 2024 season was the final one under the guidance of the Minnesota Boys High School Volleyball Association.

“I’ve never experienced something like this,” Eastview junior middle blocker Colin Nathan said of the state tournament atmosphere. “It was pretty amazing.”

The top seeds played out per their ranking with No. 1 Eden Prairie, No. 2 Eastview, No. 3 Rogers and No. 4 Spring Lake Park advancing to the semifinals on Wednesday, June 11.

Here is a look at what happened in the quarterfinals: 

• No. 3 Rogers 3, No. 6 St. Paul Central 2: What an incredible way to open the first-ever state tournament. This was tense and close from the start as each team had dazzling displays of power in a match that lasted more than two hours. Rogers built a two-set lead, but watched as scrappy St. Paul Central battled back to tie and force a deciding set. That was dramatic as well before the Royals (26-1) completed it for a 25-21, 25-21, 23-25, 21-25, 15-13 victory. 

  “We are very grateful to be the first team to win,” Rogers head coach Jarol Torres said. “It’s special.”

  Junior right-side setter Ethan Pearson powered the Royals with 26 kills, and senior outside hitter Landen Holterman added 17. 

  St. Paul Central senior outside hitter Josiah Walker had 24 kills, including the first one in state tournament history. The Minutemen (21-6) said they felt the strong support in the crowd and beyond. 

  “We weren’t just playing for Central,” first-year coach Georgia Tilton said. “We were playing for the entire City of St. Paul.”

• No. 2 Eastview 3, No. 7 Hopkins 2: Eastview, the Section 1 champion, took control from the start en route to posting a 25-17, 25-12, 25-19 victory over Hopkins in the second match of the day. Junior outside hitter Jay Thammavongsa had 15 kills and junior setter Brice Dehnel had 27 assists. Eastview (28-3) has not lost a set in four postseason matches. 

  “We knew coming in here that if we executed, we’d be OK,” Lightning coach Ryan Dehnel said. “If we fell asleep, we knew we’d be in trouble.”

  Senior outside hitter Owen Barnett had 12 kills to lead Hopkins (17-9).

  Eastview’s victory sets up a championship semifinal with Rogers. The two did not meet during the regular season. 

• No. 4 Spring Lake Park 3, No. 5 North St. Paul 1: Spring Lake Park head coach Shelly Deegan wasn’t overly concerned about her team’s mindset entering the inaugural Boys Volleyball State Tournament. Even after dropping the first set to the Polars, she remained confident. So did her team. 

  “There was an uneasy calmness, but they started coming alive,” she said.

  The Panthers certainly did by rattling off three consecutive victories on the way to a 17-25, 26-24, 25-20, 25-18 victory in the third quarterfinal. Senior outside hitter Remi Xiong paced the Panthers (24-7) with 15 kills, and junior outside hitter Atticus Molitor chipped in with 11. Senior setter Hector Ly had 19 assists as the Panthers avenged a 2-1 loss to North St. Paul during an invitational on May 17. 

  North St. Paul (25-3) got 12 kills from senior Chi Nou Vaj and 10 each from senior Evan Thor and senior Roman Thao. 

  “Errors started showing up,” Polars' coach AJ Vang said of the loss in the second set. “Nothing was going our way.”

• No. 1 Eden Prairie 3, No. 8 Park Center 0: Top-seeded Eden Prairie looked the part in a 25-19, 25-18, 25-14 victory over Park Center. Senior outside hitter Gabriel Hernandez powered the Eagles (25-2) with 11 kills in the match that took just 1 hour, 12 minutes. Senior setter Deion Lange dished out 32 assists. 

  The victory sends the Eagles into the semifinals where they will face Spring Lake Park. Eden Prairie defeated Spring Lake Park in two sets during an invitational on May 3. 

  Park Center (13-9), the Section 5 champion, was paced by senior Payton Xiong, who had seven kills and senior setter Titus Lee, who had 19 assists.