About Karasuno ( 烏野)
The school's Boys' Volleyball Club was founded many years ago and has often been associated with crows due to the school's name. Its banner, in fact, reads "Fly" which alludes to crows. It was said that Coach Ikkei Ukai had a ferocious pack of crows during Karasuno's glory days.
As a former powerhouse of Miyagi, Karasuno has represented the prefecture at the Spring High National Tournament nine times. One of those occasions was under the guidance of Coach Ikkei Ukai and Tenma Udai, also known as the "Small Giant" ("Little/Tiny Giant" in the anime English dubbing), and was famous throughout Miyagi.
However, after the initial success, Karasuno failed to pass its prefecture's preliminaries in future tournaments and therefore received the derogatory nicknames "The Fallen Champions" and "The Flightless/Wingless Crows". It wasn't until five years later did the team finally return to Nationals.
For a while, Karasuno did not have a coach due to Ikkei's hospitalization after a few months of coaching the previous year. Daichi Sawamura then took on both the captain and the coach's duties until Ikkei's grandson, Keishin Ukai, became the new coach. The managers of the team consist of Kiyoko Shimizu, a third-year and the original manager, and Hitoka Yachi, a first-year recruited by Kiyoko after the first tournament.
The main starting lineup is composed of Daichi Sawamura, Asahi Azumane, Ryūnosuke Tanaka, Yū Nishinoya, Shōyō Hinata, Tobio Kageyama, and Kei Tsukishima. Karasuno is currently famous for its quick attack performed by Kageyama and Hinata and its unique members: Kitagawa Daiichi Junior High's "King of the Court," Kageyama; Chidoriyama's champion libero, Nishinoya; and the 164cm-tall middle blocker, Hinata.
Karasuno's main rivals within the Miyagi Prefecture are Aoba Johsai High, Date Tech High, and Shiratorizawa Academy.
The club's "destined" rival is Nekoma High, which Karasuno has always lost to. Because their animal representatives (cat and crow) are usually found by the dumpster, their matches are called the "Battle at the Garbage Dump". In the English dub, it is referred to as 'The Trashcan Showdown'.
Karasuno's strongest attribute is its offensive power, with a heavy focus on attacks such as the quick strike, pipeline, and synchronized attacks using tempo. It also utilizes uncommon techniques like the Calculated One-Point Two-Setter, the jump float serve, and a libero toss to throw off opponents.
They won the 2012 Miyagi Qualifiers Tournament against Shiratorizawa and advanced to the Spring Nationals. When they got there, they managed to rank in the top 8 of all of Japan after losing to Kamomedai.
They earned two consecutive participations at the Tournament for the next two years. In 2014, they placed in the Top 16 after losing in the third round to Inarizaki. In 2015, they played on center court against Itachiyama in the semifinals, and lost, ranking third nationally.
