We Serve First all-star event shows continued growth in 2024 event

By: Ted Sarneso
Saturday, December 7, 2024 | 9:59 PM

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There is always a fire and good competition at the We Serve First Volleyball All-Star Classic, but some years outshine others.

Tim Toy saw first hand after Friday night’s practice just what this year’s group would bring to the event Saturday at Kiski Area High School.

“All the girls came together as one and broke the huddle with a thunderous, “Fun!” that echoed throughout the gym,” said Toy, who’s wife, Ellen, started the We Serve First Foundation in the last days before she lost her battle with gastric cancer in 2015.

The girls were excited to be there, not just to have one last chance to play high school volleyball but to help a charitable cause.

“Whenever I got asked to play in this event, it was so easy for me to say yes,” said North Allegheny setter Mackenzie Jones. “I love the idea of raising money so that other girls can have the same opportunities to play this sport as I did.”

Added Freeport outside hitter Leach Schreckengost: “I loved the event. I got to meet a bunch of new girls that I had only ever played against. There are a lot of girls in college who have played in this event, so it’s cool to just see everyone come together for a good cause.”

The girls were drafted onto four teams headed up by coaches from participating schools.

This year’s group of coaches were Andrea Lasher of Armstrong (Orange), Alyson Shirey of Burrell (Purple), Knoch’s Diane Geist (Gold) and St. Joseph’s Ann McCarthy (Blue).

As in previous years, the games are kept to a single winner-take-all set.

In the first-round round robin, the “Gold Diggers,” as they named themselves, lost all three of their matches.

In the 10-minute break that separated the first round and the semifinal round, the Gold team came together in the corner of the gym bleachers to regroup.

“We kind of just accepted the fact we were underdogs and had to work hard and push it. That mindset just kept us going and we pulled it out.”

The Orange team won all of it’s games to be crowned the No. 1 seed heading into the semifinal round and would be the Gold team’s opponent.

The Diggers shocked the entire gym defeating the Orange team 25-22.

In the second game, No. 2 seed Blue defeated No. 3 Purple by the same score when the teams played each other in in the round robin: 25-15.

The Diggers outlasted the Blue team with a 25-23 win in a tightly contested set for an all-star classic.

“The level of play was outstanding, and it was a really fun atmosphere. We really connected there in that last match as we wouldn’t have at the start of the afternoon because we had grown accustomed to playing with each other all day,” said Schreckengost.

Said Toy: “That last match was great, back and forth the entire time, and the four seed comes out of the blue, wins it all. I love that. I credit it to the fact that we had players this year who have played high level club volleyball. They know how to play the game the right way, and that rubs off on to other kids and they want to be a part of that. Every year the play has gotten better.”

Each year, the committee selects its all-tournament team, and this year’s selections were Jones as the setter, Kiski Area’s Maddie Joyce for libero, Bridgit Murphy of North Allegheny was selected as middle hitter and Alaina Whitlinger of was chosen for outside hitter.

Awards are also handed out for the MVP, whom the committee selects, and the Teammate Award, which is voted on by the players.

This year, Schreckengost was picked for the MVP and Jones was chosen for the Teammate Award.

“It’s truly an honor. To win the MVP award that’s named after Ellen Toy. I’ve heard so many stories about her, and it’s just amazing that I was selected,” said Schreckengost.

Added Jones: “One of the real big deals for me is to be a really good teammate because that’s what drive’s a team to be successful so I always strive to be the best teammate I can.”

This year was another successful one for the We Serve First Foundation in its continued efforts to help support young athletes who need help to continue to play club volleyball or be enrolled in camps because of lack of funds. The foundation was able to give money to eight athletes, up form five last year.

“The foundation, we are fortunate that we find people that need our services very easily,” Toy said. “Club volleyball is an expensive endeavor, and there’s families that have good incomes that still find it difficult. When we find a family that’s struggling — and unfortunately there’s a lot of them out there — and we have our eyes and ears open in the volleyball community trying to find people to help out.”

This year’s event also grew in participation as the number of girls (40) was up from last year (36) and the number of schools involved increased by nine to 23.

“We have to go with the flow there. We would like to make sure we are respectful of the schools that are in our area. Some didn’t send any athletes and some athletes declined because they have other commitments,” Toy said. “We must go out into the community to find other participants, and we’re going to hunt for some good players. Like this year, we went and brought in kids from North Allegheny and Peters Township.

“I don’t think those schools will not want to be in this moving forward. To me, that’s a really good thing and how we grow this.”