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Mustang Volleyball Boys Getting First Taste Of Court Action
JEBB FOX
Oakdale’s Jebb Fox sets the ball during action on the home court against Lodi. This is the inaugural year for Mustang boys’ volleyball; varsity head coach is Kelly Nasrawi and Kelly Olson is head coach for the JV boys. Photo By Jeff Kettering

A first-year program, Oakdale High School is fielding both Varsity and JV boys volleyball teams this spring.

Several other Valley Oak League schools were already offering the sport and OHS joined in this season.

“When we first put our feelers out back in October and November, we had over 50 boys interested in playing,” said varsity head coach Kelly Nasrawi. “We are competing with five other boys sports this spring season – track, swimming, golf, tennis, and baseball – so ultimately some of those guys had to make a choice. We currently have approximately 20 boys in our program.”

Initially, the coach added, they had too many for one team but not quite enough for two teams.

“We decided since we are trying to start and build a program, it was important to keep everyone and make two teams happen. This will give the seniors out there the opportunity to play in this inaugural season, as well as give the younger boys time to learn, develop, and get some game experience,” Nasrawi explained. “So, we have both a JV team and a Varsity team. All of our boys have very little to no experience playing organized volleyball. They are eager to learn, working hard, and we’re all having a great time doing it.”

The squad has been busy in preseason play, facing off so far against the more experienced teams from Riverbank, Downey, Enochs, Big Valley Christian, Ripon and Lodi, and still looking for a victory.

Action on the home court this past week saw the Mustang varsity squad fall to Lodi in straight sets – 12-25, 16-25, 13-25 – but coaches and players alike are looking forward to gaining momentum and hopefully putting some wins on the books this inaugural year.

“We all are truly enjoying this experience and we are so excited to be a part of history at Oakdale High School,” noted Nasrawi. “We are excited to continue to build the program and give more young men the opportunity to play a fun and amazing sport for years to come.”

 

SOFTBALL

Picking up where they left off last season, it has been a winning spring so far for the varsity Lady Mustangs on the softball diamond. They were able to get in a couple of tournament games on March 3, taking down Hughson by a 17-3 final and shutting out Atwater, 10-0. They were at Patterson for a March 7 non-league contest and played their way to a 15-1 victory in that game.

The JV girls, meanwhile, put up big numbers in a 19-0 shutout of Atwater on March 3.

 

BASEBALL

Varsity baseball is looking for a win, having lost two and tied one in early preseason play. They fell at Gregori on March 1 by a 15-5 final and then were shut out at home by Pitman on March 3, falling 12-0. They faced off with Atwater on March 7 and battled to a 7-7 tie in the non-league contest.

The JV boys were 11-2 winners at Gregori, lost to Pitman by a 10-1 score and came back to craft a solid 13-3 win over Atwater to open the season 2-1.

At the freshman level, the boys have won two and tied one; shutting out Gregori 10-0 and taking an 8-1 win off the field against Pitman. They tied Atwater, 5-5.