The UNA Men’s Volleyball Club is one of the newest clubs on campus, starting just last year. The team offers both “A” and “B” teams.
They currently have ten players on each team, but, with busy Fall schedules, there are some gaps on the “A” team that are filled by “B” team players. With the club being newer and lesser known, both teams mainly consist of freshman and first year volleyball players.
Nathaniel Miller, a middle blocker for the team, said, “When I first toured UNA, I asked about a men’s volleyball and I was told they didn’t offer any.” He did not find out about the volleyball team until he had started his Fall 2024 semester.
The club hopes that the players’ schedules will allow for more playing time. Despite consisting of younger players, both “A” and “B” teams have continued to grow this semester. This semester, the team has played in tournaments and scrimmages against teams like the University of Tennessee in Knoxville, Oakwood University, and Vanderbilt.
When they went to Vanderbilt on Oct. 28, they got to the gold bracket with many team B to A substitutions. The team plans to keep their wins up during their scrimmage at UNA on Nov. 24th.
During practices, the team is focusing on improving their skills by working hard on mastering basic skills and fully understanding the sport. They are practicing to be able to work together as a team to win. One of the team’s main goals is to be more recognized and to work their way to become a part of UNA’s Athletics Department. They want to become a part of UNA’s Athletics Department so that they will have more opportunities to play in tournaments and scrimmages.
Miller said he really enjoys playing volleyball and loves his teammates. Miller got into playing volleyball through playing with the Huntsville Volleyball Association with his dad. When he got to UNA, he joined the men’s volleyball club and started to learn new positions and got to learn more in depth about volleyball.
