Roman Cervone has been playing volleyball since he was 11, and his sister started playing before that. But he had to play on girls’ travel teams because there weren’t any boys’ middle school volleyball programs in Prince William County, Virginia.
Cervone managed a middle school girls’ team and, at the club level, became a 12-year-old playing on a team for 15-year-olds.
That experience prompted Cervone and his dad, Ron, to lobby the school board in the Northern Virginia school district.
After Fairfax County schools in Virginia introduced the sport in 2024, they crafted a petition and then started a new one. For months, the two attended meetings and urged the district to make a change.
Their recent advocacy was successful, as the school division added boys’ volleyball to its list of sports offerings this fall.
“It’s just something that I wanted to do, because I know that other schools got it around me,” Cervone said. “I realized that it was a viable option that I could do, and something that I could advocate for.”
At Colgan High School, there were more students interested in joining the team than there were available roster spots — a challenge because the school doesn’t have a junior varsity team.
Colgan’s final roster, is a mix of club volleyball players and others who have never played competitively, head coach Tom Moren said.
Initially, some players did not take it seriously. But Moren said, that stopped quickly. He coached the girls’ volleyball team for nine years with major success.
“If you look at our banner, it’s full for the last nine years,” Moren said. “We’ve won every district championship, and for that team, it’s basically, you start off with a real disciplined approach.
Because the girls’ team also uses Colgan’s gym for its practices, the boys’ group sometimes has to change its schedule, practicing later into the evening. In some cases, they have two games a day.
“Sometimes, there’s a little bit of trouble coordinating with how late our practice is in comparison to the rest of our teams,” sophomore Miles James said. “It’s definitely an issue that could be resolved over time as the sport continues to become more integrated into the county.”
Colgan’s team started the season 8-0, results that assistant coach Ron Cervone attributes to the group’s motivation to have success and the ability to work with three coaches.
“Boys’ volleyball is the fastest-growing sport in America for boys,” Ron Cervone said. “So what does that bring? It’s not only at the high school level, 32 states now that have it, but it’s at the college level.”
That increases the opportunity for scholarships, he said.
Adding boys’ volleyball programs at all 13 high schools is costing Prince William County over $176,000, a spokesperson said.
For Senior Tyson Hatch, it’s a worthy investment.
“We hope to continue our undefeated record,” Hatch said. “Hopefully, that will inspire or get some people interested in coming to our team next year.”
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