![Troy Hoyt finishes the Boston Marathon, running for the Hoyt Foundation. T. Hoyt is the son of Hoyt Foundation CEO Russ Hoyt.
“[Running a marathon] might seem like a big thing, when it’s presented to you at first, but if you break it up and just keep telling yourself, “Yes, you can,” you can start chipping away at it. And before you know it, you’ll be running the whole 26 miles, and you won’t even think twice about it.” T. Hoyt said.](https://waylandstudentpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/C36E8761-1CBB-452E-9DF2-543EF7B1095E_1_105_c.jpeg)
Once again, the boys varsity volleyball team is racking up achievements, while along their quest for the state title.
On Friday, May 9, the boys varsity volleyball team beat Boston Latin in a five set thriller to claim the Dual County League (DCL) title. This achievement is just one of the notable feats accomplished by the team this year, and they aren’t done yet.
According to head coach Philip George, the team set three goals at the start of the year: number one, win the DCL title outright. Number two, be the number one seed going into the state tournament. The team is currently atop the standings, ranking second in Division 2, with four games left. The team’s record is twelve wins and five losses. Number three, win the state title. Last year, the Warriors were one set away from winning the finals, before losing to Westfield in five sets.
“I’m generally happy with where we’re headed,” George said. “We play a deliberately hard schedule, and that makes our record look a little uglier than I think our team’s ability is, but the play itself is generally headed in the right direction.”
The team has needed to face some challenges, as they have played five top-ten Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association (MIAA) Division I teams, beating three of them, including a five set loss to the defending Division I champions, Newton North.
“That game was the best I’ve seen our team play yet this year,” George said. “[We played with] a lot of energy, a lot of togetherness and a lot of aggression.”
The tough lineup of teams is something that can not only provide good competition, but also help the team prepare for their third and hardest goal: claiming a trophy.
“Playing the top competition translates to everybody knowing how to play under high stress situations because since we always play hard teams, we’re always in positions that are difficult to succeed in,” junior captain Finn Bell said. “By the time that you get to the playoffs, it shows that you know how to handle yourself, you know how to perform when under pressure, and that gives you the edge in the competition.”
Bell led the DCL in kills last year with 302, with the next closest player 74 kills away with 228. The outside hitter recently etched his name in the Wayland record books, surpassing WHS Class of ‘17 grad Jack Fletcher for career kills. Fletcher had 875 kills in 2014-2017, and Bell now has over 930 kills, with some of his junior year still remaining.
“I never come into the season and be like, ‘all right, this year, I’m trying to break records,’” Bell said. “I’m looking for team success, and in search of team success, records come along. Having something where you break a program record through your junior year is really awesome, and it’s super cool I had the opportunity to do that.”
Along with his record breaking performances, Bell has assumed the leadership role that comes with being a junior captain. Bell stated that this year, he has embraced the position with greater intensity than last year, when he was a sophomore captain and not as experienced.
“Finn is a ferocious competitor, and his leadership generally manifests itself in the kind of intensity of his play,” George said. “He is our leader on the court without question.”
George remembers when he first took the team over a couple years ago, they had about 21 kids at tryouts. This year, they had 35.
“[This] was the most we’ve ever had by quite a bit, and I think it’s an indication of the culture that our players have built,” George said. “They’ve made it both an entertaining sport with a really high level of competition, and they’re also good guys who are nice to be around, who are supportive of new people and who appreciate the kind of humility it takes to try something totally new.”
The team culture is something that both George and Bell have stressed in previous years. This year, the team is reading a book: The Culture Code, as part of a team book group. The Culture Code is a book that talks about building a winning culture as a team.
“One of the things as the captain that you have to focus on, is my responsibility to cultivate [the team’s] culture,” Bell said. “Our chemistry right now is on par with last year. We’re trying to get it even better.”
Wayland has three regular season games left, including a championship game rematch against Westfield, and a chance to achieve their final two goals: get the No.1 seed and win the state championship.
“Winning a state title would be a great symbol of the growth our program has had,” George said. “We’ve become a really competitive high level program, but we haven’t crossed over and codified that with a victory. The one seed in our division is really significant. There are a couple of very high level teams, Westfield and Agawam, and it’s a benefit to be on the side of the bracket where you don’t have to play both of them.”
