2022 has seen the largest number of HBHS students participating in the sport - a huge testament to the work the boys put in on and off the court.

Senior A Volleyball

The 2022 season started off well, with two wins against Fraser and St Peter's Cambridge. We won both games three sets to none, putting us in a great position early on in the season. Unfortunately, after the Super 8 tournament, COVID spread to many of our team members, leaving us unable to continue playing for the time being. When our team was finally fit and healthy again we played 3 games against Matamata, Melville and Tokoroa. Coming back after a few weeks off, it looked as if the team wasn’t ready to play. We lost our first set to Matamata, 19-25, however, we brought it back by winning the next three sets. An easy win against a defeated Melville team followed. Our next game was our first truly challenging game, against Tokoroa. It was a hard game going to five sets, but eventually we pulled through and took the win 15-13 in the fifth set.

The final Saturday of games started off with the semi-final against Tokoroa. Once again Tokoroa gave us a run for our money, taking us to 5 sets. Fortunately, we were able to pull through and continue to the finals, against Hillcrest High School. The final started, and we were neck and neck with Hillcrest for the first half of the set. However, due to a few missed serves, a couple of open blocks, and some bad passes, they took the set. Regrettably the morale and energy dropped a lot after that, and the team wasn’t able to fully recover. Hillcrest took advantage of every opportunity we gave them to score. This ultimately led to us losing 3-0. Despite this loss, the boys and I are still ecstatic that we were able to fight for the second place trophy. Aki Tuivailala was also named in the Star 7 for the whole competition! A pretty mean feat! The Senior B team also had a successful season winning Division 2.

Volleyball at HBHS is still fairly young compared to other sports, so hopefully in the near future, we can fix the flaws in our game, take HBHS Volleyball to the next level and aim higher in the future.

By Kawana Snow, Captain of Volleyball

Junior Volleyball

Record numbers entering the Waikato Volleyball Junior Secondary Schools saw HBHS enter five teams across the three boys divisions.

In Division 1, our Junior A team had a tough semi-final loss against a resilient Fraser High School team. This put us against Matamata College in the third and fourth playoff. After a slow start, our boys were able to come back strong to win this game game 2-1 to finish in third place. The Junior B team had it tough playing against only A teams but performed well, beating many of these teams to finish in 8th place.

The Division 3 semi-finals saw the remaining three teams feature: HBHS 10A versus Tokoroa and HBHS 9A versus HBHS Whero. Our 10A and 9A teams were winners on the day with the Whero team placing fourth overall - a good result for such a new team. The final was a tough battle that went to three sets but saw the 10A reign victorious over the 9A to take the gold medal. The 9A were awarded the silver medal.

A special congratulations goes out to Isaac Marsden for being named in the Star 6 Tournament team. Well done to all the boys for their mammoth efforts and a massive thank you to all the coaches, managers and parents for their support this season. It wouldn't have happened without you all. We look forward to seeing you all on the court next season!

Volleyball Inter-Provincial Championships

Queen's Birthday saw five of our current Premier Volleyball team members pack up and head to Wellington for the annual Interprovincial Championships.

Hikawera Puriri, Tamwi Metai, and Moses Mapa were part of the Waikato Under 17 team that placed an incredible second place after a tough battle against Canterbury in the final. All three players played a key role in their team's success and were able to develop skills and experience further. Hikawera was one of two Waikato players named in the Star 7 (top players from their age group for the tournament) due to his impressive ability to win numerous points through some smart net play.

The Waikato Under 19 team saw Captain of Code Kawana Snow,and Keteitoga Inoke, represent their school with pride. This team had a range of experienced players including some University-aged players. Unfortunately, with some tough competition, this team placed a respectable 7th overall.