The PA boys’ volleyball team will close out its season in a few weeks, and will hope to keep its playoff hopes alive. The team currently sits at 10-9.

Astronomy teacher Jeff Kinser, who has entered his 19th year coaching the boys’ volleyball team, feels that one of the biggest expectations is sportsmanship.

“I want them to behave properly,” said Kinser. “The goal as a coach should be to raise these young men, help raise them, help give them some guidance, and teach some volleyball in the process.”

Some of the players that are helping the team are newcomers William Bland and Reid Miller.

“They’ve added a whole lot to the team just with their sheer athleticism,” said Kinser. “They have a whole lack of volleyball knowledge, but their athleticism just normally does better than the other teams.”

Along with new players, Kinser feels that the team has lots of strengths.

“We are a very tall team,” Kinser explained. “We are much taller than the other kids for the most part. We do serve relatively well. We’ve got a lot of new kids that are learning the sport pretty well.” He added, “We’re in the right direction.”

Kinser feels that one of the biggest challenges for the team comes from a lack of communication.

“Passing and talking is our biggest problem right now,” said Kinser. “Volleyball can be slightly dangerous if kids just run into each other without calling for the ball.”

But even in the toughest of times, the team is still optimistic about finishing the season better than it started.

“Our goal is to win more games than we lose and hopefully make it out of the regional tournament,” said Kinser.

He also gave a few words of advice: to be aggressive and stay positive.

“When they’re back in serve and receive for passing, you want to think ‘I’m better than this passer or this server so I’m going to take it,’” Kinser explained. “A lot of positivity moves in with life so if you’re more positive about life, you’re going to have more positive outcomes than if you automatically think negative.”