Last year, in the inaugural season of boys volleyball as a Kentucky High School Athletic Association-sanctioned sport, the Ryle Raiders were the cream of the crop in Northern Kentucky.With head coach Meredith Heater, Ryle went 22-4, winning the Sixth Region championship before falling to Louisville Trinity in the state tournament.Now a year later, and a new head coach in Heather Kidd, the Raiders are on their way to another possible regional title and state tournament appearance.Ryle in 2026 is 12-3, having only lost to Walnut Hills, Louisville Trinity and Louisville St. Xavier. Their record also includes an 8-0 mark against region opponents.
Ryle sits in fifth in the KHSAA's RPI report for the sport, behind St. Xavier, South Warren, DeSales and Trinity."We've played everybody but two teams in our region," Kidd said. "The boys are playing really well right now and have been all season.
We have a lot of returners, though, so we have a solid, solid group of boys."The two regional foes unseen by Ryle so far are Oldham County and Collins. Oldham County hosts the Raiders on April 28. Both teams are undefeated in the region and both were state qualifiers last year.Returners from last year's squad, Ryota Kondo and Andrew Stropko are leading the Raiders again.Kondo has 209 assists for Ryle as well as 82 digs, 53 kills and 44 aces.
Stropko, a sophomore, has 165 assists, 81 kills, 74 digs and 29 aces. Junior Max Kidd leads the team with 114 kills and 35 total blocks and Eddie Rieffer has 80 kills. Collin Kemper leads with 132 digs.Their season so far, especially the losses to St.
Xavier and Trinity, has prepared the Raiders for the final stretch."It's really important (to play Louisville teams)," Kidd said. "One, it gives you an idea of where you need to be if you want to compete for a state title. Two, it gets us the competition we need so that it can prepare us for our region play."I would rather play a good team and lose to get that competition and the experience for the boys."Unlike last season, when the Region 6 qualifiers were pitted against Region 5 (where Trinity and St.
Xavier reside), the Region 6 teams will visit Region 8 qualifiers to begin the state tournament. Pikeville and Powell County, last year's Region 8 finalists, again lead the region this season.This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Ryle boys volleyball seeks another KHSAA state appearance in 2026