White River Junction
After exchanging niceties during warmups prior to the Hartford Parks and Recreation Department’s power volleyball program on Tuesday night, six experienced players gathered at Dothan Brook Elementary School get into the game right away.
Sneakers squeak as the ball pops through the air, the occasional shout of “Play! Play!” echoing off the gymnasium walls when it appears a volley will stay inbounds.
While participants concur the coed, 18-and-over program is essentially pickup play, the term power volleyball was chosen for a reason: to dissuade those brand-new to the game. Most of the players it draws also participate in the Carter Community Building Association’s competitive coed adult volleyball league, which holds spring and fall seasons.
The program in Hartford is akin to offseason training for these sultans of the set and spike. Plus, it keeps them active during the dark winter months.
“You can’t really do much outside this time of year,” said Tom Evans, of Quechee, who worked with Hartford program coordinator Jay McDonough to get power volleyball started and helps collect the $2 fee per player for use of Dothan Brook’s gym from 7:30-9 p.m. “It’s raw and rainy out today; you can’t even really ski in weather like this. I’d rather be in here, playing.”
While none of the six are beginners, they range widely in age and experience. Evans is the oldest of the group at 58; his closest junior is 45-year-old Ed Kroes, a sizable chef from White River donning a worn Grateful Dead T-shirt. Kroes joked that he’s enjoyed an “illustrious career” while participating in adult volleyball leagues on and off since graduating high school.
Bobby McCanne, 35, is a former high school soccer player from rural Illinois who today resides in Meriden and helps coordinate the CCBA leagues, while 29-year-old Krystal Laundry, of Enfield, is a former Mascoma High player who has played at pickup locales around the Upper Valley — so long as they’re 18-plus.
“It’s kind of my way of getting away from kids,” Laundry joked. “I’m a nanny for kids under 5.”
McCanne’s team rallied for a huge comeback against Evans’ in the first game on Tuesday, overcoming an early 11-2 deficit to win, 25-23. It won by the same a score after switching sides for game two, then went down a man when one of its players, Hanover resident Chris Brooks, had to leave a half-hour before the end of the session.
By then, players were sweating and clearly high on endorphins after stalking the airborne ball for an hour. Playing with only two players only meant more running for McCanne and lone teammate Anna Kuta in what became a 3-on-2 matchup.
While standard volleyball play is 6-on-6, that’s not necessarily the best scenario at power volleyball, which runs for nine weeks.
“Four-on-four is really kind of ideal for good practice,” McCanne said. “When it’s 3-on-3, there’s a lot of open space, so if someone wants to be mean, they could keep hitting it to the open part of the floor, though we don’t really see that with our group. When you have four people, you can cover that space better, and five works OK, too.
“When you have six per side, there’s a chance you don’t really get enough plays on the ball or touches (for sufficient practice), and then if you get more than six, you have people sitting and waiting to rotate in. So there’s definitely kind of a fine line on what’s ideal.”
Kroes, a chef at the Quechee Inn, noticed the group training at Watson Park in Hartford Village during its summer sessions and decided to join in.
“I need it,” he joked with a rub of the tummy. “Really, I just love volleyball. I have ever since school. It’s such a fun game.”
Indeed, many harbor fond memories of spirited volleyball battles with classmates in physical education class at school. Laundry, the former Mascoma player, has tried a number of PE-style pickup programs in the area before seeking out power volleyball in part because of the increased level of play.
“I figured I’d try a new challenge and meet some more people,” she said. “It’s really about getting out and socializing.”
Power volleyball runs a total of 12 weeks leading up to the CCBA spring season. For more info, contact jmcdonough@hartford-vt.org or 802-295-5036.
Jared Pendak can be reached at jpendak@vnews.com or 603-727-3225.