By Kyle Anderson Staff Writer
If any Loyola fans were in attendance, no one could see or hear them. As visiting Loyola College faced Salisbury University in the Eastern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association (EIVA) Championship in March 2009, the Salisbury crowd filled the gym with cheers, chants and genuine chaos.
But when the ball pounded the gym floor and the final point went to Loyola, a deafening silence fell among the crowd as the Loyola players dove into a pile at center court.
The score of the third and final game: Loyola 15, Salisbury 10.
Hard to imagine that just 21 years earlier, men's volleyball championships weren't possible at Loyola.
When Pete Wolf started his freshman year at Loyola College in the fall of 1988, no men's volleyball team existed. But that was something he wanted to change immediately.
"When I visited Loyola, I really liked it, but I was still deciding between here and Springfield College, where I could have walked on the volleyball team," remembered Wolf.
"I had always played sports in high school and needed some way to stay active."
When the frigid New England weather drove Wolf away from Springfield, he decided he would start a volleyball club team at Loyola.
With the help of the women's coach and the support of the club sports directors, Wolf was off to a fast start.
When approximately 50 students showed up for the tryouts however, Wolf knew he would need some help. So he enlisted the assistance of two women's varsity players, Laura McCall and Vicky Stickney, to aide in coaching.
After whittling the roster down to 15 students, the work really became complicated.
"The most difficult thing back then was scheduling," Wolf said. "This was before email, so everything had to be done over the phone. I was always calling other schools trying to find the people in charge, trying to set up matches. A lot of logistics were involved."
Despite the hardships, Wolf was able to assemble a 13 game schedule in Loyola's inaugural season. So naturally with the talented players and Wolf's dedication the team breezed through the first season, right?
Not quite.
"I think we went something like 2-11 in our first season," Wolf fondly remembered. "We got better every year though, and in my senior year we went to the club national championship up in Buffalo, and we were able to finish 3rd in Division II"
The team that had not existed three years earlier was now competing for national titles in Division II.
Through the years, the reins have been handed down from president to president, who molds the next set of wide-eyed freshmen into next season's leaders. But the team has not always been as popular as it was in the beginning.
In the 2005-2006 season, the team competed with the bare minimum of players.
"My freshman year we had only six players,"
remembered Matt Pavlis, the team's current co-coach and a 2009 graduate of Loyola. "No seniors were on the team, and it was not as serious as it is now."
Today the team is a throwback to Wolf's days, but with updated facilities and equipment.
The roster is filled with 16 players, including eight freshmen. Two co-coaches make sure that practices are run smoothly, while the president and co-president ensure team unity, safety and fundamental volleyball.
But whether the team was winning or losing, Loyola students have continued the clubs legacy for many reasons.
Some for the love of volleyball, others as a way to stay in shape during a stressful semester.
"The team was a great outlet to have when youíre so busy with school," Pavlis said. "Especially during my junior year, when I had so much going on, it was great to be able to play a few times a week."
Every semester current and former Greyhound volleyball players meet up for the Alumni Match, which pits 18-year-old freshman against their 40 year-old predecessors.
And despite the age difference, the matches are always competitive.
"The alumni match is important to me for several reasons," Wolf said. "I'm sure the current guys think I'm just some old bald dude, but I get a chance to really see how my skills have deteriorated over the years. I also get to see how everyone is doing and how the team is changing."
No matter how the team has changed over the past 20 years, it's obvious from all the jawing, trash-talking and joking during the alumni match that the teamís attitude has remained constant.
The latest match, on November 8, was filled with current and former players enjoying the game while sharing stories and laughs.
"I'm proud every year that (the club) keeps going," Wolf said. "I feel like we left a legacy and have given a few hundred kids the opportunity to play volleyball at a collegiate level."
And as the seasons continue to pass and the legacy continues, the alumni team will only continue to add more old, bald dudes like Pete Wolf.
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