The middle school boys volleyball teams traveled down to Busan Foreign School (BFS) to compete in the South Korea Association of International Schools (SKAIS) tournament. Varsity aimed for a three-peat, while junior varsity (JV) set their eyes on gold. Despite injuries and other hardships, both teams landed on the podium – varsity with a well-fought bronze and JV with a championship.
Varsity kick-started their tourney against the BFS Sharks. Due to their consecutive losses against the Sharks in the Korea International School Activities Conference (KISAC) tournament, the boys were fired up and eager to settle the score.
The Jets improved communication through captain Charlie Park (number 23)’s command, and ace hitter Kevin Ahn (number 27)’s powerful kills, but they lacked the intensity and consistency necessary to take the win (26:24, 25:19). “It was a close match against BFS. We really wanted to beat them after we lost to them in the KISAC tournament. We felt like we improved a lot, but we just couldn’t get the win,” said captain Park.
With quick feedback from Coach Jolly, they vied off Atherton International School (AIS) in a lopsided match. Smooth passes to setter Daniel Kim (number 21) flowed into kills, as they dominated the court. Despite cruising to victory (25-19, 25-7), they stayed composed and used the match to regain their confidence for the battles ahead.
After a long break, they squared off against the Gyeongnam International Foreign School (GIFS) Tigers in what turned out to be an unbalanced matchup. Opposite hitter Steven Jang (number 1) delivered jump floater serves that penetrated the Tigers’ defense, while outside hitter Willy Wei (number 37)’s precise tips crumbled down the opposition’s positions (25:16, 25:11).
For the last match of the round-robin, the boys took on the International School of Busan (ISB) Bears. In order to earn the ticket to the finals, they needed to secure a win. While the Jets managed to come on top after a tight first set (25:23), the mounting pressure turned into a series of blunders in the second (25:15).
While the third set showed promise for a momentum shift, the boys couldn’t complete the comeback, falling short (15-13). “It was a really close game against DIS. They had strong, good players that made it difficult for us to play against. We got lucky to win the match, and both teams were equally strong,” said Ethan Cha, varsity Bears player.
Although the crew fell short to reach the finals for the three-peat, they clashed again with AIS to secure bronze. Regardless of the disappointment from earlier, they earned a well-deserved victory (25-20, 25-18) with the help of bench members Tony Kim (number 16) and Alex Yoo (number 11), whose immaculate receptions and attacks proved crucial.
While varsity failed to clutch gold, JV paved their way to the finale with ease. With only three schools and four teams in their division: BFS, ISB, ISB2, and DIS, the competition played out smoothly. Entering as a first-seed, they prepared with a winner’s mindset.
In the championship match, they clashed against the BFS Sharks once again. After beating the Sharks three consecutive times since the KISAC tournament, they entered with confidence. However, the final hurdle to the gold medal came with obstacles.
Set one began in no time. Setter Aiden Hwang (number 18) and middle Aiden Shin (number 18) set their feet down with synchronized sets and hits. With roars from the boys, only one set remained between them and the trophy (25-15).
In the second set tension tightened. The home crowd erupted with energetic cheers, which overwhelmed the youngsters. But they bounced back quickly to close the point gap.
In the midst of a 22:22 tie, captain Sean Kim (number 7) approached to bump the ball over the net but crashed into middle Joon Jang (number 0). While Kim got back on his feet, after a few steps, he had to lay down, grasping his hamstring.
“I don’t even remember what really happened. I just remember that I bumped into someone really hard. I stood back, but my leg just gave up. It was a really close match, and as the captain, I wanted to continue playing,” said captain Kim.
With the captain sidelined, the crew immediately crumbled, as BFS took their chance for a comeback (25:20). “I was absolutely terrified. I did try my best to stay composed for the team, but I was so nervous. After Sean’s injury, I knew that the team got mentally shaky. However, I also knew that we were capable of beating BFS, but I just wasn’t sure,” said Coach Hayward.
Transitioning into the third set, they hoped for a change. Despite concerns of the absence of Sean Kim, substitute Henry Cha (number 12) penetrated the opponent’s defense with eight consecutive serves.
However, the Sharks did not fall back. From 8-0, they rallied back to a 12-12 tie. While the ball moved back and forth with intensity, JV had nothing to fear—the KISAC tourney prepared them to execute plays under high-stakes pressure.
With a 14-13 lead, they positioned themselves for a reception. The ball traveled through the air, but they shouted, “out!” in unison as the scoreboard flipped numbers (15-13).
“The DIS JV team played really well, and they worked as a team. It definitely was a challenge to play against the team, and it made us fight for every single point. We took the game to three, but DIS came on top, and did an amazing job,” said Ashely Cottier, coach of the BFS Sharks.
While both divisions faced ups and downs, they all wrapped up the tournament on a high note. They ended the 24-25 season with more than just game experience—they gained valuable lessons in determination and teamwork to carry into future seasons.
