Seneca Valley's Kyle Martini was one of the players on the first-year Steel City boys volleyball club team that placed 13th in the country this season.

JACKSON TWP — Karen Martini had never coached boys volleyball players before.

Apparently, she's pretty good at it.

The Seneca Valley High School girls volleyball coach teamed with assistant coach Brett Poirier to form a Steel City boys club team for the first time this summer.

That team — competing in the 17-year-old division — wound up placing 13th out of 65 teams at the USA Volleyball Boys Junior National Championships recently in Columbus, Ohio.

“Much better than we could have expected,” Martini said. “These boys just came together.

“I've been coaching girls for 18 years. Coaching a boys team was definitely different ... a wonderful experience.”

She said that while fundamentals and technique are relatively the same, “boys hold each other accountable more and don't hesitate to call somebody out that way.”

Martini said a couple of boys approached her and Poirier about starting a summer club team. They had been playing summer volleyball in Pittsburgh and wanted to play for a team closer to home that practiced more often.

“Some summer clubs only practice one day a week, if that,” Poirier said. “We got together more often than that. These guys were really into it.”

Comprising the Steel City team were Cody Schnur, Tyler Rankin and Nash Bryan of Butler, Steve Eckenrode, Kyle Martini and Kyle Montrose of Seneca Valley, Luke Olson of Pine-Richland, Matt Menosky of Bishop Canevin, Mike Krueger of Canon McMillan, Tyler Osselborne and Dan Hutchinson of Deer Lakes.

Steel City competed in tournaments in Columbus, Lancaster, Indianapolis and Rochester, N.Y., before returning to Columbus for nationals.

“We didn't win any of those events, but we advanced to the gold level in all of them,” Martini said.

Poirier is from Michigan and is a former professional beach volleyball player. Now 46, he was an active player for more than 20 years.

Kyle Martini and Menosky are headed to Florida this weekend to compete in a national beach volleyball event.

“The kids on this (Steel City) team were looking for more than convenience,” Poirier said. “They were looking for the right fit. It's important that summer volleyball club teams mesh together and adhere to the same style.

“These guys were all on the same page. They functioned well as a team and that's how they succeeded.”

Steel City won five matches at Junior Nationals, many of them tight ones. It rallied to win twice after losing the first game, winning by scores of 22-25, 25-20, 16-14 and 23-25, 25-14, 15-12.

“They are into thhe game and showed a lot of patience on the court,” Poirier said.

Martini and Poirier are holding a boys volleyball camp July 31 through Aug. 3 at Seneca Valley for ages 14-17. Steel City consisted of only the 17-year-old team this year.

Next year, the organization plans to field teams in the 16, 17 and 18-year-old divisions.

“We all enjoyed a great year and we want to build on this,” Martini said. “I know interest in this club is growing and it can only help the sport in this immediate area.”