At first glance, recreational volleyball might seem like just a bunch of people with a ball and a net; it’s just a hobby and nothing more. For those who have ever put on a jersey, it can be a life-changing experience.

Graduate student and rec volleyball player Armen Zakarian grew up like lots of young boys playing a sport, but volleyball was not it.

“I didn’t play volleyball until the end of high school. I played basketball my whole life,” he said.

An entertaining way to get in better physical shape would lead him to give up his childhood game. “I saw the sport and thought it would be really fun; get my vertical up,” he said. “I ended up sticking to it and quitting basketball.”

Volleyball is no longer just a game; it’s Zakarian’s future.

“I’m getting my masters in kinesiology, and I’m going to be teaching and coaching. That’s going to be my career,” he said. “I’m gonna be stuck in volleyball for the rest of my life, and I’m really happy about it.”

Zakarian won’t be the first athlete to get involved in rec volleyball and wants to stay connected to the game as long as possible, especially locally in Sacramento.

Club volleyball was started at Sacramento State in 1980 and was originally coached by Gary Colburg, husband of legendary Sacramento State women’s volleyball coach Debby Colburg.

Weidi Zhang, a former member of the Chinese National team and coach of many international teams, took over in 1988. Zhang led Sac State to two National Intramural Recreational Sports Association (NIRSA) Division I national titles (1995 and 1997). He is now an assistant coach for the women’s collegiate team.

Current women’s collegiate volleyball head coach Ruben Volta was a player on the 1995 rec volleyball team that brought Sac State its first of two national titles. A women’s rec volleyball team was created in 2002 and its current coach, Greg Byers, used to coach for UC Davis.

Robin Soldwisch, a graduating senior and president of the women’s rec team, joined when she was just a freshmen after being invited to open gym by a dorm mate. “It’s a lot more relaxed,” Soldwisch said. “There’s more free time, not all the pressures that there would be on the NCAA team, and we still have a great time.”

Having no NCAA affiliation may cause potential players to balk at joining one of the rec volleyball teams, but the level of competition can equal – if not exceed – the NCAA teams across the country.

“I understand that when you put the “rec” in front of it, it gives it a bad connotation, almost like P.E.,” said Head Coach Sukhjit Dhillon. “But it is a very competitive sport.”

With so few colleges having Division I men’s volleyball teams it is easy to make the mistake of associating rec volleyball with amateur volleyball.

“There are a lot of talented guys that fall through the cracks and aren’t playing on those (Division I) programs,” Dhillon said.

Jason Borchin, a former Sac State rec volleyball player, now plays for the University of Pacific’s NCAA Division I team. Zakarian graduated from UC Santa Barbara after playing on its NCAA-affiliated Division I team. Ryan Madden is also a grad student with NCAA Division I experience from playing at UC Santa Cruz.

Dhillon had playing and coaching experience before coming to Sac State and eventually ended up getting asked to play in a game by former teammate and current player Joe Gengler. When the coaching position became available, Dhillon’s former teammates asked him to become coach and he accepted.

During the weekend, the team participated in the Far Westerns Tournament, hosted by UC Davis, where teams from all over California played each other. Sac State dominated Saturday, defeating Humboldt State, Cal Poly San Luis Obispo and UC Santa Barbara, winning six of seven sets.

The teams got much tougher in the advanced rounds but the Hornets more than held their own. Sac State defeated San Jose State, No. 4 UC Berkeley, No. 27 UC Davis and San Diego State, winning eight of nine sets.

Meeting Sac State in the Gold Final was Fresno State, currently ranked No. 3 and the last team to hand defeat to the Hornets. The Bulldogs continued their winning ways against Sac State, winning both sets and ending the Hornets nine-game winning streak.

The women’s Far Westerns tournament is scheduled for this week starting on Saturday, also at UC Davis.

“I want to win a national title,” Dhillon said. Getting to the final four would be a huge accomplishment, considering we haven’t been anywhere near there in the past few years.”

Despite the losses to Fresno State, the team is progressing along well and has the experience and players to go far in the playoffs.

“With the talent that we have on this team, if we weren’t in the final four I didn’t do my job,” he said.