Participation for Oregon high school boys volleyball eclipses threshold the OSAA

Back in October, the Oregon School Activities Association’s delegate assembly voted to approve boys volleyball as the state’s first “emerging activity.”

The status of emerging activity gives boys volleyball coordinators and coaches an avenue for the state association to consider it to be a sanctioned sport at a later date. This includes organizing at the club level to see what participation would look like.

As part of the process, the OSAA needed at least 50 member schools to field teams. Oregon’s boys volleyball signup date was on Feb. 1, and the Oregon High School Boys Volleyball Association shows that 71 teams from 76 schools have signed up for the spring 2024 season — a figure far beyond the required number the OSAA asks.

The first practices will be on March 18 with games starting on April 8. The state championship event (not sponsored by the OSAA) for boys volleyball will run from May 31 to June 1.

The last time the OSAA added an official sport was in April 2023, when wrestling was split from being considered a co-ed sport into boys and girls wrestling. Prior to that, the OSAA hadn’t added a new sport since softball was sanctioned in 1979.

Water polo and esports have been discussed in past OSAA meetings, but neither are currently listed as emerging activities the way boys volleyball has been.

— Nik Streng, nstreng@oregonian.com, @NikStreng