Trojans' trio nets all-district honors

Placing even one player on the all-Dominion District boys volleyball squad is a tremendous accomplishment.

The state’s most competitive boys volleyball district boasts seven state championship squads (and four runners-up) in the 15 years the sport has been officially sanctioned by the Virginia High School League.

For one of the Dominion’s smallest student bodies to produce three first-team all-district selections in the same season was unlikely at best.

But when the seven coach’s picks were announced after Cosby defeated James River in a five-game thriller to win the district tournament, there they were: three Midlothian players – senior outside hitter Keith Harbula, senior setter Kevin Speers and junior libero Connor Pollard – holding their all-district awards alongside James River’s Sam Albus, Clover Hill’s Brendan Herring and Cosby’s Graham Gresham and Derek Sullivan.

The reality that the Trojans represented nearly half of the all-district’s first team, despite finishing third in the regular-season standings, wasn’t lost on Midlothian coach Jack Speers or his players.

“I definitely didn’t expect it,” said Pollard, who earned all-district honors in his first season as a full-time starter after taking over Harbula’s former role as the Trojans’ defensive specialist. “When Coach told us, I think we were all a little surprised.”

Well, not all of them.

While he recognized the depth of quality talent in the district, the elder Speers insisted he wasn’t surprised at all when the voting was finalized.

“The other coaches in the Dominion District are pretty deep in volleyball knowledge,” he said, “and they recognized our situation.”

Midlothian’s “situation” is partially a product of its enrollment, which according to the VHSL directory is the second-smallest of the six Dominion schools that sponsor boys volleyball. While the schools that finished atop the district standings (Cosby and James River) each boast more than 2,000 students, Midlothian has a pool of roughly 600 fewer student-athletes from which to select its athletic teams.

That’s a significant hurdle to overcome when you’re trying to change a losing culture within a program, as Speers has since he took over as head coach of a 2-18 Midlothian varsity boys squad three years ago.

“I’ve been blunt with the parents that winning takes commitment and we’re not just out there for fun and games,” he said. “Being a small school, it’s an extra challenge. But as I told the players, we had to look at our cup as half-full, not half-empty.”

As much as he enjoys coaching, Speers never intended to lead Midlothian’s varsity. Having previously coached his sons in club volleyball, he was content to serve as the JV coach and avoid putting Kevin in the “awkward situation” of playing for his father in high school.

The younger Speers acknowledged there were initially murmurs about whether he deserved to start or was merely the beneficiary of nepotism.

“I definitely earned my spot,” he said. “Once people saw my ability, that wasn’t a question any more.”

Kevin Speers and Harbula were the lone returning starters this season for a Midlothian squad that lost five seniors and was in desperate need of leadership.

That was just one of the new roles for Harbula. He had spent his first three seasons of high school volleyball as the Trojans’ libero, but his superior athleticism and a significant growth spurt prompted a move to outside hitter as a senior.

“He’s just an all-around athlete. He can play any position well,” Kevin Speers said.

Harbula thrived in his new job as Midlothian’s top offensive threat, finishing the season with 372 kills, 30 aces and 16 blocks.

Speers dished out 905 aces to go with 63 aces, 36 kills and 27 blocks.

And while Midlothian’s lack of size up front left him frequently in the crosshairs of the district’s top hitters, Pollard held his own at libero and completed his junior season with 271 digs.

“Trying to replace Keith was definitely daunting at first because he was all over the court last year,” Pollard said. “But my teammates and coaches had confidence in me and helped prepare me to step into the lineup.”

The three first-team all-district players were a big reason why Midlothian was able to turn what was expected to be a rebuilding season into a second consecutive third-place finish in the Dominion District.

“I’m proud of all of our guys. Even though we didn’t beat [Cosby and James River], we showed how hard we worked and what the other coaches thought of us,” Kevin Speers noted.