Roughly 450 miles from his Portales home, 11-year-old Adrian Abarca clutched a first-place trophy in a Dallas gym. Pride glowed beneath his blonde hair. 

Could you blame him? His sets helped Next Level Volleyball Club – based in Lubbock – to win a USA Boys Junior National Championship in late June. But in that tournament, which hosted 250-plus boys’ teams of various age levels from various U.S. states and Puerto Rico, Adrian’s mom, Jennifer, pointed out another reason for her son’s joy: The realization he wasn’t the only boy who played volleyball. 

“I think that kind of gave him some encouragement to keep going,” Jennifer Abarca said.

Boys’ volleyball is growing nationally, if not in Clovis or Portales.

Clovis and Portales High School don’t offer it. There aren’t any local, boys-only clubs at the high school level in either community. 

If Adrian wants to continue playing as he grows up, his best bet may be club teams in Amarillo or Lubbock – both nearly four-hour round trips.

Amy Hancock, a coach at Next Level Volleyball Club, said the low participation rates in Clovis and Portales is chiefly a byproduct of the stigma that volleyball is meant for girls – not boys. Jennifer said Adrian “is the only boy,” in one co-ed league in Portales. 

As a result, there isn’t anyone those like Adrian can look up to for inspiration. His mother said she doesn’t know any boy from Portales who has charted a volleyball course to the college level. 

Despite participation in the sport “jumping 56% in the past decade” at the high school level, according to the National Federation of State High School Association, boys’ volleyball remains dwarfed in relevance by football, basketball, and baseball locally. 

But Adrian said he doesn’t see being the only boy as a negative. Instead, it’s a source of pride. 

“I think it’s cool to be the only boy that plays volleyball in Portales,” he said. 

And despite the complications, the sport can afford opportunities that others can’t. 

A case of supply and demand, Hancock said the youth surge has prompted more colleges to field men’s teams. With player spots to fill, that means schools are offering more scholarship opportunities than ever before. 

Players don’t need to be generational – just good enough. A vast difference compared to football where floods of talented players go unsigned by colleges every year. 

Hancock said one player she coaches, “is going to be a part of a brand-new collegiate program in Minnesota” this year. 

“The programs are growing and there are scholarships and ways for boys to go to college to play volleyball, if they’re willing to just put it out there and go for it,” Hancock said. 

Local recruitment doesn’t hurt either. 

Set to spend the night, one of Adrian’s friends recently watched a sand volleyball practice from the sidelines. Adrian said he started to have “fun.” Getting to see the sport’s fast, pinballing energy and the unique camaraderie between teammates dispensed a sense of curiosity. 

“He was thinking about maybe joining,” Adrian said.