Oak Park High School’s boys beach volleyball and court volleyball pairs consistently place in tournaments. With a majority of the same athletes on both teams, it’s impressive to watch these athletes excel through the two seasons. Last year, the court team went undefeated in league and this year, one pair in beach volleyball placed second in league overall.
Why are they so good? Ultimately, the success of this team comes most from a high level of team chemistry.
“I’ve been friends with Brody since I was five, and Ryan and Alex since freshman year,” senior Adam Noy said. “I hang out with these three gentlemen as much as I can. I also am friends with a lot of other players on our team.”
His teammates are in agreement.
“I’ve been playing with some people on the team for four years,” senior Ryan Rosenthal said. “I got to play with my good friend Adam and we were partners this beach season, it was a lot of fun. I got into volleyball in 9th grade and I have played all four years of high school except for when I tore my ACL. I made sure to heal in time to have one final hurrah with the boys.”
Being a senior is challenging because in the back of your mind, you know that this might be the last year you will spend seeing your current friends every day.
“It is our senior year and the three of us will be ending our volleyball careers but not our friendships,” senior Alex Newman said.
There is no doubt that these boys have built meaningful friendships and genuinely care about each other. It is clear that they know how to have fun whether that is playing volleyball or going fishing together.
“My volleyball friends and I go fishing weekly at Lake Sherwood after practices or games. Teammates who catch fish together win together,” Noy said.
Hanging out with your teammates outside of practice and enjoying their company can help a team do well.
“It is cool to hang out with Adam, Alex, Brody, Ryder, Aryan, Max and Raja and I am friends with basically everyone on the team, ” senior Ryan Rosenthal said. “They are cool people. We chill outside of practice and hang out. They are some of my closest friends.”
Team chemistry is incredibly important and some of these boys have been playing together for a long time.
Friendship is a valuable thing and aids with motivation. When you have fun with the people you are playing beside, you do well for the success and pride of the team.
“I have been playing with most of the team for a long time,” senior Brody Gallagher said. “My brother Dylan, had played for years so he got me into it. Then, I got Adam into it and soon we all ended up on the boys beach volleyball team in 9th grade.”
The morale and overall enjoyment of the boys volleyball, especially the senior players, at OPHS is at a high.
“Something we joke about to each other is who wins the smiles game,” Rosenthal said. “This is not about points, but about who smiles and has fun the most. Personally, I think Adam Noy wins.”
These boys are very fortunate to be a part of a sports brotherhood. There seems to be no drama, constant laughter, major support and little conflict on this team. They only have kind things to say about each other and one can easily tell they have good friendships.
“Ryan, Brody, and Alex are some of my best friends,” Noy said. “Brody is smart and athletic, Alex is witty and humorous and Ryan is annoying in a funny way.”
It is rare to find a group of varsity athletes who genuinely all like each other, without the feeling of competition. While this group of seniors are done with OPHS beach volleyball, they will be returning to the sand just to compete with each other for fun and to watch younger generations.
“We will definitely come back when we are home from college to watch our favorite juniors, sophomores, and freshmen play some good beach volleyball,” Newman said. “It is sad knowing that the beach volleyball chapter is technically over, but it doesn’t really feel like it because of all the friends I have made.”
As a coach or advisor of a sport, these boys are an ideal group—they are athletes who are always excited to play their sport for the purpose of enjoyment, laughs, and comradery with their teammates.
