Most kids from the local area, including 72% of Madison students, have played in one of the many youth sports programs offered in Vienna. Vienna Youth Incorporated (VYI) is one of the programs, and it offers eight sports for boys, girls and coed. Other youth sports programs include Vienna Little League (VLL) for baseball and softball and Vienna Youth Soccer (VYS) for girls and boys soccer. One of the most popular sports in the area as of late has been volleyball.

“I started playing volleyball because my friend wanted to try it out and she didn’t want to do it alone,” Maddie Michelbacher (’27) said. “My overall experience at VYI was great because I got to find my love for volleyball in a chill environment, where I could just have fun and not worry about being perfect skill level wise.” 

All of the leagues offer their sports at a more competitive level, but VYI and VYS have house sports programs that provide an opportunity for less experienced players to try a sport out in a more relaxed environment that focuses more on having fun and meeting new people. 

“From there my love for volleyball blossomed and I continued to play for another season of house,” Michelbacher said. “Then I transitioned to my first competitive season of volleyball with VYI’s travel team.”

Michelbacher played on the freshman team last year, JV this year and plans to play varsity volleyball next year. Michelbacher also said that she improved a lot over her time with VYI, especially on the travel team. She thinks being on the travel team helped her a lot when it came to trying out for Madison because the coaches were very knowledgeable about volleyball and were able to teach them how to get better effectively. She’s not alone as 36% of students who played in a Vienna youth sports program went on to that sport for Madison. Cael Yates (’25), another athlete, shared a similar experience with Vienna Little League.

“I played baseball growing up and wanted to keep playing when I moved here so I joined Vienna Little League,” Yates said “Vienna Little League was an amazing time. It created a new source of friends for me and taught me many things about the game of baseball. I continued to love the game of baseball growing up so I naturally wanted to play in high school. Seeing the Madison players at the opening Little League ceremonies always made me want to put the jersey on one day as well.”

Now he’s a pitcher and third base for the varsity baseball team. He also added that VLL inspired him to want to play for Madison as well as his love for the game.

But these youth sports leagues have not just contributed to Madison athletics, they’ve also contributed to the Madison Pyramid community as a whole as they create refereeing jobs and volunteering opportunities as coaches for students. This allows students to gain experience being in a leadership position and learn essential skills for managing a team. 

Other VYI alumni have noted that these programs bring people together, both students and parents, into a tight community where they can meet people they may not have had the chance to otherwise. 

“VYI and volleyball in general truly fostered a cohesive environment with a team first mentality and close companionship,” Michelbacher said.