Girls Volleyball: Mattie Chapman, defending state champ Newark set to start new chapter

Mattie Chapman doesn’t have to go far to find championship memories.

Chapman, Newark’s senior middle hitter, has a photo of the last point of last year’s Class 1A state championship match in her room at home – a keepsake her grandma got Chapman for Christmas. Whenever Chapman was in Newark this summer, she was inevitably offered congratulations.

“I have my medal and the state finals hat,” Chapman said. “Fun stuff like that, it’s like ‘Wow, people care.’”

It’s a season, 40-2 and the program’s first state title, to never be forgotten – but Chapman and Newark are ready to turn the page and write a new chapter.

“I’m decently good at that, good at looking at the next chapter, not forgetting about the past but knowing it’s time for the next thing,” said Chapman, who committed to Southeastern University in Lakeland in February. “Coach has trained our minds in a healthy way to have that mindset. If we look at ourselves like ‘Wow, we’re state champions,’ not ‘Wow let’s get better and see what happens,’ we could get complacent and that would not be good.”

The bar has been set quite high – but yes, Newark has the potential to be just as good.

The core of the championship team is back, led by two-time Record/Ledger Player of the Year Madi Malone. The 6-foot outside hitter already holds Newark’s single-season kill record with 497, career kills record with 965 and single-season aces record with 79.

Chapman, who had 211 kills and 60 blocks, is back in the middle, and so is Newark’s third hitter sophomore outside Megan Williams. Ace libero Meggie Scott, who had a program record 543 digs, is back to anchor Newark’s back row. Cassie Adams also returns as a defensive specialist.

“That’s the golden question, is how do you come out of a state championship season and what’s the approach,” Newark coach Tonya Grayson said, “especially when you know you’re bringing back the majority of your team. I’ve spent a lot of time talking to coaches that have been in that position.

“It’s a new chapter with a new group of girls. We have that same potential, but we have to do it differently. The question is how will we tackle the challenge.”

The most obvious change this season will come at setter, with the graduation of three-year starter Olivia Nelson. Junior Taylor Christian steps in, and sounds more than capable of filling those shoes.

“She’s very athletic, she’s a great setter, I think she’ll fit in just fine,” Malone said. “We’re still trying to get our connections down but I think she’ll do pretty good this year.”

At Newark’s second middle 5-10 junior KJ Friestad takes over for Alyssa Gittins.

Newark, which starts its season Aug. 28 at home against Ottawa Marquette, will clearly be one of the favorites in Class 1A – but Grayson noted that the landscape has changed some. With the classification numbers going up, a few strong teams like defending 2A runner-up Galena and sectional finalist Lena-Winslow will be in 1A.

“We know we’re going to be strong enough to compete with anybody, but it won’t be easy,” Grayson said. “The target on our backs will be incredibly larger, but the girls embrace that.”

“A lot of it is mental – I believe you just have to stay focused one game at a time,” Scott said. “You’ll never get better if you stay the same as last year. We have to take it one game at a time and focus on the task ahead of us.”