Sport

SALT LAKE CITY — Duke Mossman couldn't believe the words that were being said even as he sat in the room with the Utah High School Activities Association ...

USA Volleyball also recently selected Salt Lake City to host the boys volleyball national championships in 2023. "We've already produced some of the best players in the nation, national team selections and professional volleyball players," said Willett, referencing former Provo High and BYU star Ben Patch, among others. And John Speraw, head coach of the U.S. men's national team and UCLA, also wrote to the board to implore sanctioning. According to National Federation of High School Sports participation statistics from the 2018-19 school year, 25 states had already sanctioned boys volleyball, while Minnesota and Indiana will vote on sanctioning in May. In many ways, the timing was perfect for boys volleyball to join the ranks of sanctioned sports. So Mossman, other coaches and the rest of the community turned to the internet. In 6A, three of the four regions host teams assigned to each school, and all but Cyprus and Roy in Region 2 have players on campus that come together in two or more schools to field a team. They set up a petition to sanction the sport on change.org that drew more than 10,300 signatures. A year later, a motion to sanction the sport failed by an 8-5 count. The numbers are similar in 5A, where just seven schools don't field a full team, and those seven have at least four players registered on campus. Most of them are led by volunteer head coaches, where 53% of programs pay their respective schools for gym time to play and practice. The UHSAA says teams will begin play in the spring, making 44 trophies across all classifications awarded that season.