Macleans College boys claim their first Auckland Junior Volleyball title
Posted on November 18, 2025
Macleans College celebrated a landmark week as both the boys and girls volleyball teams achieved their strongest results in school history at the Auckland Junior Volleyball Championships.
Their determination, teamwork and composure under pressure delivered standout performances that captivated supporters and set a new benchmark for the sport at Macleans College.
The tournament featured 48 boys’ teams and 48 girls’ teams, creating a highly competitive environment for all schools involved.
The boys’ team secured their first-ever championship title. They worked hard throughout the opening two and a half days to reach the semifinals against Rosmini College. After losing the first set, they refocused on the basics and claimed the second set before taking the decider.
In the final, they faced Papatoetoe High School. Once again, they dropped the opening set. After clear direction from their coach, alumnus Randy Jiang (Te Kanawa House 2014 - 2018), the team lifted their performance and won the next two sets with confidence.
Three players were selected for the tournament team: Jake Ashley (Mansfield House), captain Mathew Bailey (Kupe) and Ryan Lee (Hillary). Jake also received the honour of being named tournament MVP.
The girls’ team also reached new heights, finishing third overall. Their semifinal game against Howick College was tightly contested, ending in a narrow 17-15 loss in the deciding set. They responded strongly in the playoff for third and fourth, defeating One Tree Hill College to secure the bronze medal.
Two players, Jasmine Gao (Rutherford) and Diya Guan (Hillary), were selected for the girls’ tournament team in recognition of their consistent performances.
Before the matches, the Teacher in Charge of Volleyball, Mr Becroft, reminded the players that how they conducted themselves after each game would be remembered as strongly as their performance on the court. Every student represented the school with pride and maturity.
The teams were well supported by many family members whose encouragement strengthened the team spirit across the tournament. Coaches Randy Jiang, Tommy Tran and Kenneth Cher devoted significant time throughout the year to help the players reach this milestone, with Randy providing many years of guidance to the sport.
Macleans College Volleyball Junior A Boys team:
Jake Ashley (Mansfield House)
Mathew Bailey (Kupe)
Aiden Chen (Rutherford)
Christian Gade (Kupe)
Yusei Kosaka (Snell)
Ryan Lee (Hillary)
Brendon Li (Mansfield)
Marcus Liu (Rutherford)
Lucas Wong (Rutherford)
Andy Wu (Batten)
Nathan Zhang (Mansfield)
Macleans College Volleyball Junior A Girls team:
Luo Yuan Bao (Hillary)
Yuni Choi (Upham)
Quinn Croker (Upham)
Jasmine Gao (Rutherford)
Diya Guan (Hillary)
Megan Joubert (Te Kanawa)
Hannah Russell (Snell)
Angela Zhao (Snell)
Cynthia Zheng (Upham)
Hayley Zhu (Batten)
