The Emmaus High School boys volleyball season finished the 2024 campaign 16-3 overall and 11-1 in the Eastern Pennsylvania Conference, tied for the best record in the league with Parkland.

The Green Hornets also competed in the final four of both the EPC and District 11 3A Tournaments, falling to Whitehall in both. All of this was done under first-year head coach Jonathan Wilson.

“Overall, my experience this season was a great one,” said Wilson. “I came into a team that not only has talented players, but they are good kids as well. A lot of work went into this season from the team as a whole and they were committed to making those changes from the beginning. Being a new head coach of a prestigious program, it’s hard to ask for more than that.

“I believe this season made us better as athletes and individuals. My coaching methods and philosophies were challenged and have grown which is great. I don’t want to become stagnant. I will always be extremely grateful for this first year at Emmaus. I wouldn’t have wanted to start my coaching career at Emmaus with any other roster. This season will always be a special one for me.”

Wilson spoke about many different games and moments that he will never forget in his opening season at the helm.

“Our first official match of the season is one that will always come to mind,” Wilson said. “Sandwiching the JV and Varsity teams into a bus and driving two hours to Northeast PA to play Delaware Valley. Both teams went out and played very well for the opener, giving us our first season win and my first ever win as a head coach. More than the victory though, the team was just electric. We were excited to be together, to play a sport we love with our brothers. For me, it set a different tone for the season. The Bobcat tournament at Northeastern High School was also pretty incredible. We played well all day, battling against the top teams in the state.

“Playoffs were intense, high-energy, rapid-fire games to 15. Every point mattered, easing up meant you went home. So great to see our guys battle through that and make it to the finals.”

When asked about standout performers, Wilson couldn’t name just one. And that is a good sign of a successful program. And most of these student-athletes that had successful seasons were underclassmen coming back next season.

“I could go down the roster list and rattle off standout performances for everyone, and that is so cool,” said Wilson. “We’ve had such a deep bench all season which is pretty rare. Our pin hitters really had their work cut out for them because everyone was in the mix. I believe we had some sort of line up change in that department almost every week or so of the season. Lucas Mondin, Ben Skekel, Brayden Dang, Grayson Answini. All hard workers, all very hungry, came to practice focused, and each brought something different to add to our team dynamic and culture. Colin Holden is another one. Arguably one of the best middle blockers in the EPC. He had multiple standout performances and made it very difficult for the opposing hitters.

“We also had Jackson Holden and Gabe Dressler who saw the court regularly sometimes as a serving substitute, which is an extremely difficult position to be in. They took that roll seriously and jumped on any other opportunity they could to help their team. It was great to see all these guys work hard and work for each other.”

The senior group that will be graduating and were the leaders of the program for the first-year head coach include Jametric Harris, Cooper Henseler, Cael Kratzer and Kyle Long.

“I was extremely thankful to have seniors that have been main contributors to the program for multiple years,” Wilson said. “From a competitive standpoint, all four guys are great players. It was also great to step in as a new coach and feel like they trusted myself and the other coaches to do our job and what we were setting out to achieve was good for them and the team as a whole. To have their respect and trust, it also allowed us (the staff) to enable them to build into the vision of the program right away and in their own unique ways. They had ownership and we worked together through it all.”

The future is bright for the Green Hornets heading into year two with Wilson.

“There’s a lot to be excited about,” said Wilson. “There’s no shortage of potential when it comes to athletic ability within the team. I’m excited to pick up and keep pushing to build the type of environment we set off to make this year. We took some great steps this season, but the job isn’t finished. It’s an ongoing and living thing, that the other classes are bought in to improving for the players that follow in their footsteps.

“The upcoming seniors are aware of the big shoes they need to fill. We all stand on the shoulders of those who have come before us, coaches and players alike. We’re all ready to take that challenge, to build this program into something bigger and add to the legacy and reputation that is Emmaus boys volleyball.”