History was made at the Tiger Den on Tuesday night, as for the first time in school history, a boys volleyball team took the floor for a home game. One of two new IHSAA-recognized sports for the 2024-25 school year, boys volleyball made its debut in Kosciusko County as Warsaw hosted Carroll. Each game was close, but it was the Chargers that left town with a 3-0 win.
“There’s so much history in this gym. I’ve seen so many great girls teams and basketball games played here,” head coach Jason Fleming said after the game. “To step on the court for the first time with a men’s volleyball program, and to be in charge of that, that’s really cool.”
Things were a bit sloppy to begin the game, as more than a handful of the contest’s early points came on unforced errors. The scoring was back and forth in the early stages, with both teams taking the lead early on.
As the game wore on, the pace began to pick up. Kills that had gone into the net before were now being buried into the hardwood. Players were diving everywhere to make some spectacular digs. Things remained close as both teams reached 10 points, but Carroll was able to do enough to stay on top for a large stretch of the set.
Warsaw hung tough the whole way, keeping things close for the most part. The Chargers eventually went up 17-13 for their largest lead of the night thus far, and sort of took control from there. Carroll would go up by as many as seven before the Tigers were able to come up with an answer to get things back within four. That’s as close as they’d get though, as the Chargers were able to regain their momentum and close out the first set with a 25-20 win.
Warsaw got off to a much better start in the second set, opening up an early 4-1 lead. It didn’t last long, as the visitors quickly rattled off four straight points of their own to retake the lead. That set up another back-and-forth portion of play, where both teams seized momentum at various points to take the lead. “
“I’m really proud of how we played tonight. We’ve only been together for three weeks,” Fleming said. “They pick things up really well and they’re very athletic. I think we’re only going to improve the rest of the way.”

    Warsaw junior Miles Rager works at the net during Tuesday night's home match against Carroll...Nieter

Things remained close for the next few points, as an ace by Daniel Ruzza helped Warsaw get within a point after falling behind by three. It didn’t take long for Carroll to separate once more though, as the Tigers were soon forced to call timeout after falling behind by five at 14-9.
Similar to the latter stages of the second set, Warsaw did well to prevent themselves from falling behind by too much, but were unable to string together enough points to challenge the Chargers for the lead. After falling behind by as many as nine late in the set, the Tigers were able to rally to tighten things up late. However, it would not be enough as Carroll was able to take a commanding 2-0 lead with a 25-19 victory.
The third set got off to an awfully similar start as the second, as Warsaw was able to take an early lead before Carroll was able to go on a run to jump in front. The Tigers were able to show some fight, going on a run of their own that was punctuated by a big block from Logan Carl to tie things up at six all.
It remained a one-point game for quite some time, but Warsaw was unable to get over the hump and retake the lead. They were able to tie things up on multiple occasions, but could not surpass the visitors.
Eventually, they would. An attack error by Carroll led to the Tigers taking their first lead since 3-2 at 16-15. They’d stay in front for a bit before the Chargers were able to tie things up at 18 all before retaking the lead a point later. Battling closely in a crucial set, Fleming called timeout trailing 20-19.
As had been the case all night, the Chargers were able to take control of the game during the final points, finishing off the sweep with a 25-22 win.
Warsaw (1-1) will take on South Bend Riley at home on Monday.