KSSSA: Kesogon Girls eye national glory as volleyball rivals prepare for another showdown with Kwanthanze
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Reading Time: 5min | Fri. 24.07.26. | 13:00
Kwanthanze have dominated the modern era with seven national titles, including championships in 2022, 2024, and 2025, while Kesogon has consistently emerged as the team most capable of challenging that supremacy
Few rivalries in Kenyan secondary school sports have consistently produced the level of quality, drama, and high-stakes competition witnessed between Kesogon Secondary School and Kwanthanze Secondary School.
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For four consecutive years, the two schools have set the standard in girls' volleyball, sharing national and East African honors while producing finals that have come to define the modern era of the Kenya Secondary Schools Sports Association (KSSSA) and Federation of East Africa Secondary Schools Sports Association (FEASSSA) championships.
Now, Kesogon returns to the KSSSA National Term Two Games in Thika with one objective: to reclaim the national title they last won in 2023.
The Trans Nzoia-based school heads into the championship as Rift Valley champions after beating former national champions AIC Kosirai Girls in straight sets to lift the 2026 Rift Valley Secondary Schools Sports Association (RVSSSA) title.
The convincing 3-0 victory once again demonstrated why Kesogon remains one of the country's most consistent volleyball programs.
Located in Cherangany sub-county, Kesogon Secondary School has steadily transformed itself into one of Kenya's volleyball powerhouses.
Although their trophy cabinet may not yet rival historic giants such as Lugulu Girls or modern champions Kwanthanze, their consistency over the last four seasons has established them among the elite.
Their rise reached its peak in 2023 when they announced themselves on the national stage by dethroning Kwanthanze 3-1 in the KSSSA National final to lift their maiden girls' volleyball championship.
It was a statement victory against a side that had already established itself as one of the country's dominant forces.
However, the rivalry was only just beginning; a few weeks later, the two schools met again in the FEASSSA final in Huye, Rwanda.
This time, Kwanthanze responded, edging Kesogon 3-2 in a thrilling five-set encounter to reclaim regional supremacy and deny their rivals a historic double.
That exchange laid the foundation for what has become the defining rivalry in Kenyan school girls' volleyball.
The following season brought another chapter; Kesogon once again reached the KSSSA National final, only to suffer another heartbreaking defeat as Kwanthanze recovered to win 3-2 in one of the most memorable championship matches in recent years.
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The disappointment did not last long; when the two sides met for a third consecutive time in the FEASSSA final, Kesogon delivered one of their finest performances, sweeping Kwanthanze aside in straight sets to capture their maiden East African title in Mbale, Uganda. The 3-0 victory not only crowned them FEASSSA champions but also reaffirmed that the rivalry remained perfectly balanced.
Last year, the pendulum swung once more as Kwanthanze retained the KSSSA national title with a commanding 3-0 victory over Kesogon before repeating the feat at the FEASSSA Games, where they defeated the Rift Valley champions 3-1 to reclaim the regional crown.
The sequence of results perfectly illustrates how evenly matched the two schools have become.
Over four seasons, they have met in virtually every major final available, with each denying the other opportunities to establish prolonged dominance.
Few rivalries in Kenyan school sports can boast such sustained excellence at both national and regional levels.
Kesogon now arrives in Thika carrying the confidence of another successful regional campaign.
Their straight-sets victory over AIC Kosirai secured a fourth consecutive Rift Valley championship, underlining the remarkable consistency that has become synonymous with the school.
More importantly, it ensured they maintained their place among the favorites heading into the national championship.
Unlike many schools, Kesogon understands the demands of competing under pressure.
Reaching consecutive KSSSA and FEASSSA finals has given the squad invaluable experience of performing on the biggest stages, an advantage that could prove decisive in a tournament where the margins between success and disappointment are often razor-thin.
The draw has placed Kesogon in Pool B alongside Coast Region champions Mwanambeyu Girls, Nyanza representatives Aluor Girls, and Nairobi's Soweto Academy.
On paper, Kesogon begin the group as favorites owing to their recent pedigree, but complacency is unlikely to feature in their preparations. School volleyball continues to grow in competitiveness, with regional champions increasingly capable of upsetting established powers.
Should Kesogon progress as expected, attention will inevitably shift to the other side of the draw, where defending national and FEASSSA champions Kwanthanze will be seeking to book another place in the knockout rounds.
Another meeting between the two rivals would surprise few observers. In many ways, the rivalry has come to define girls' volleyball in Kenya.
Kwanthanze has dominated the modern era with seven national titles, including championships in 2022, 2024, and 2025, while Kesogon has consistently emerged as the team most capable of challenging that supremacy.
Their contrasting fortunes over the past four years highlight just how narrow the gap between them has become. Kesogon has won one KSSSA national title and one FEASSSA championship during that period, while also finishing runners-up on three occasions at the two competitions.
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Those results reflect not failure but remarkable consistency. Few schools have maintained such a sustained presence at the summit of Kenyan and East African volleyball, and even fewer have done so while repeatedly challenging the same dominant opponent.
As the countdown to the KSSSA National Games continues, Kesogon once again finds itself in familiar territory.
They arrive as regional champions, legitimate title contenders, and perhaps the only team with the experience and quality to consistently challenge Kwanthanze over five sets.
Whether they reclaim the national title they won in 2023 or another chapter is added to one of Kenyan school sports' greatest rivalries remains to be seen.