When sophomore Jack Hartman made the move from New York to a small town in Pennsylvania, he never expected his future to be intertwined with boys’ volleyball after leaving his old school. 

His past experiences, along with the excitement of being a new student, paved the way for him trying out for the volleyball team.

“I was excited because I’ve actually played with these guys [teammates] before because we all played club season together. So I knew some of the guys already, and I knew the coach.  I talked to one of the junior coaches down there, and I talked to the coach beforehand. So I was excited and the program here seems a lot better than it was in New York where I was,” Hartman said. 

Hartman knows that having challenges or obstacles in a sport is common and these can be used to progress you further.

“I try to learn from my mistakes because, in this sport, you have to make mistakes to win or lose. That’s basically part of the game. You can make a mistake and come back from it and earn your team a point. So I try to learn from these mistakes, and try to make the least amount of mistakes. I also try to stay positive throughout games and through the practices because if you don’t then that is where most mistakes can occur,” Hartman said.

During each volleyball game, every player is given his own time to play on the court. But it is up to the player on how he wants to use it.

“You have to be very loud on the court [to make yourself stand out]. So I try to stay very loud and keep my teammates’ attitudes and positivity up. And I just try to keep motivating my teammates,” Hartman said.

In most cases, each teammate has certain in-game positions  they play. Hartman feels that he can relate to one of those positions the most.

“I’ve played almost all of the positions, because I just do whatever position is needed. I’d say I relate to an outside hitter. You have to like everything, and I think that I am well rounded. And [in this position] I try to be the best I can be,” Hartman said.

Playing the first game of a sport can be different for everyone. But Hartman and the rest of the volleyball team always contribute during the games.

“I had never played with these guys. And luckily it was a pretty good first game. But I was nervous, and due to my nervousness I did make a lot of mistakes. But later, my coach talked to me and suggested that I just need to get out of my own head in order to focus,” Hartman said.

Every teammate on the volleyball team can manage his time on the court differently. 

“I think I manage my time very well. I am always trying to stay focused while at practice but while also having fun and socializing with others,” Hartman said.

Every person wants to accomplish different goals or things when being a part of a team sport. 

“I’ve always enjoyed volleyball and I just want to have fun. I mean, it would be great to get into college one day playing volleyball and maybe even play after college. But I don’t have any expectations, and I am just going to see what happens. I also just do it to stay in shape and to have something to do. And it was also a great way to make friends, since I am a newer student here,” Hartman said.

  Hartman also switches back and forth between the jJunior vVarsity and varsity boys’ volleyball teams. 

“I am on both teams, and I usually practice with both of them. I am usually there until 6:15 pm. And I usually practice with varsity first and then when the varsity practice is finished, I go to the junior varsity’s practice and finish practice up with them,” Hartman said. 

Sophomore Derek Reed is also a part of the boys’ volleyball team and is a teammate of Jack’s.

“Jack is definitely a great person to be around. Anywhere from in the court or in the classroom. Overall he is fun and energetic. Whenever you play with him, he always cheers you on and basically supplies the energy that the team needs. He is just really skilled at volleyball and is a great addition to the team,” Reed said. 

Juniors, Caleb Fries, along with Noah Fries and Sam Kessinger are the team captains of the volleyball team. Fries knows that every player contributes to the game using their in-game position.

“The assigned roles are obvious (setter, outside, opposite, libero, etc.) but the  earned roles are much more special. Garret Baumgartner is our reliant outside, we usually look to him to get a solid kill. Landen Fisher is our middle hitter, and we rely on him to get tons of blocks and to get huge swings. Noah Fries is our other outsider hitter, we look to him to get a crafty and smart kill. Our other middle, Tyler Kowalski, is relied on for overpass kills and strong blocking. Our liberos Nino Yohn and Ian Long we rely on to be the “energizer bunnies” so to speak. Their earned role is to be the energetic guys that keep everything off the floor. I am an opposite hitter, and my job is to be the guy to get the huge swings and big serves to change the momentum of games. Every position matters, but another earned role I have yet to talk about is the bench presence during games. Having a loud, energetic bench is crucial in a game, and it motivates the guys on the floor to do their best. Without the bench we wouldn’t be nearly as successful,” Fries said.