Club volleyball’s Johnston and Tye are the power in the middle
Utah State volleyball club member David Johnston is looking to be a presence both on and off the court.
The senior middle hitter/blocker has plans on entering the police academy after his graduation this year, and in the future hopes to have a career with the FBI.
Sophomore Mike Tye also plays with Johnston at the middle position and looks to be strong player on the team for the next couple of years. Tye has been playing with the club since he came to Utah State and still has a couple years to go.
“They are my go-to-guys,” said coach Greg Jorgenson.
Johnston is originally from South Jordan and came to USU because he – like Tye – thought that USU would be a fun school to go to; he had some friends coming here. Also, Johnston has members of his family who previously attended at USU. He is a senior in accounting and will be graduating this year.
Though this is his third year on the team, Johnston had not played much volleyball before joining the team.
He started playing outdoor games with his roommate and a friend told him he should try out for the club. Johnston said when he tried out there were about 30 people at tryouts and about half of them made the team.
At the time Johnston joined the club, there were three different USU teams. Johnston started on the bottom team and has worked his way up. For the last two years he has been on the A team.
“It has been a great learning experience,” Johnston said.
He has gotten hurt, but he hasn’t missed a game yet. He said he went up to block but the middle for the other team pounded the ball and his finger got caught. His finger was ripped open and it took five or six stitches to close, he said.
Following his graduation this spring, Johnston will be joining the Police Academy in August for a four-year commitment. He also plans on becoming a certified public accountant. Following his police commitment, he would like to get a job with the FBI, dealing with white-collar crime and fraud.
As far as volleyball goes, Johnston plans on continuing to play. He said he would like to start a club team with friends and play in some of the local tournaments, as well as continuing to play outdoor volleyball.
Johnston is looking forward to having a home match in the Spectrum. Though USU does not play many home matches, they usually are able to schedule a home match. This year it will likely be in March.
Tye said he agrees.
“We get a lot of support and home games are a lot more fun and a lot more exciting, Tye said.
Another strong player for the team is middle hitter/blocker Tye, who is in his second year on the team but has been playing volleyball for about five years – since his senior year of high school.
Tye said he tried out for the team because of the encouragement of one of the other team members.
He was at the gym last year playing and a team member told him he should try out.
Much like Johnston, Tye said he has not had much of a conflict between classes and volleyball. He said he has not had to miss much class and professors have been good about missing the occasional class for a tournament.
Tye said one difference in the team this year is the offense is a lot faster. The team is quick with its sets and shots.
Its sets are also much lower. This style of offense does not provide the defense with much of a chance to respond.
USU has become one of the faster teams in its conference and has been winning. Tye said they have been playing well and have gelled as a team.
Tye still has a couple of years left of school, and though he is undecided now, he plans on going into engineering or possibly pre-medicine After graduation he will probably continue playing volleyball in city leagues.
The Aggies will be playing in its next tournament Feb. 23 and 24 at the University of Utah.