Story by CAYDEN SANDERS Photos by KYLER ROWDEN-STUM
Tiger Media Network
Hays High volleyball hosted its first Jamboree and matches in the new facilities on Tuesday, opening its doors for its first athletic event for the 2025-26 season.
“It’s really cool to open our facility for volleyball. We have a really unique volleyball facility that really nobody else has, that I know of, with our varsity having their own court,” said Athletic Director Chris Drees. “I think that’s a unique thing for us. We want to show them off to the whole town of Hays and other communities our new facilities.”
HHS Head Coach Shannon Funk talked about the start of the 2025 season being in the new school with a new sense of pride.
“We are just really proud to be a part of this school, a part of this really cool community that has supported us to be able to do this and then to represent and play well tonight, as we present this building to the town,” Funk said. “It has been really cool for us.”
Competing in the Jamboree were Ellis, Hoisington, Smith Center, and Hays. Hays won its first point in the new facility in their match against Hoisington.
“We saw some really good competition tonight. Hoisington has got some outstanding players on their team, and I thought the girls answered well all night,” Funk said. “They played smart, they also showed me areas that we need to work on before this weekend’s tournament.”
Hays High swept its competition in the exhibition matches to start the season.
For the Indians, it was a moment of pride in what the Hays community has done for the high schoolers and everyone involved.
“I’m just proud of the way the girls played, and I’m proud of the way everybody worked hard to allow us to be able to play here tonight, because we had a lot of people working very hard to make this happen,” Funk said.
The Volleyball Jamboree is not the only pre-season event going on at Hays High this week. On Friday, HHS will host a ceremony night, allowing the community to see the new facilities, along with a boys soccer match and a football scrimmage.
“We have another opportunity for football and soccer to showcase their upcoming seasons with the players they have,” Drees said. “We are also going to introduce all the other fall sports programs, cheer, dance, and band. We have a lot of kids who do a lot of amazing things right here in Hays High.”
For the city of Hays, it is a year of firsts for the High School as Drees noted events being hosted and possible events down the line.
“Everything we do here is brand new. We’re going to host the first-ever football varsity football game at Hays High. We’re going to host the first-ever softball game at Hays High. We’re going to host the first-ever track meet at Hays High, and possibly host a regional. There is a chance for a wrestling regional.” Drees said, “Those are huge challenges, for my job, this is what its all about, is putting the kids and this community in the spotlight. I can’t express the gratitude of being a part of Hays High and this community, because it takes a lot of great, hard-working people to make this happen.
The Jamboree served as a tune-up for this weekend, where Hays High will welcome bigger schools such as Gardner-Edgerton, Olathe North, Bishop Carroll, and Lawrence Free State to compete in the Maroon and Gold volleyball tournament.
“I’m excited to practice and get ready for the tournament. We do play some big teams, we do that intentionally, because when you see those teams early in the season, it helps us coaches really prepare our girls for the grind that is the season,” Funk said.
The Hays High Indians Maroon and Gold Tournament will start at 9 a.m. on Saturday in the new Hays High Gymnasium.
“The Maroon and Gold tournament is going to show us where we shine,” Funk said. “I think we’re going to see a lot of really good things from our girls, and we’re going to compete against very high-quality teams, and I look forward to that.”