PETOSKEY – Nothing Petoskey high school senior Caitlyn Matelski does is truly small in any sport.
She was an all-conference basketball and volleyball player and will enter her third season as a first-team starter in both sports this year.
Volleyball has already begun for the outstanding right-hand attacker and Matelski has already made a great start after the first tournament.
But although Matelski is used to big results, in 2024 she is concerned with the little things.
“I just fix the little things so that everything works better and faster,” Matelski said of her focus this season.
As a senior citizen, she now tries to pass on this message to the people around her.
“We can be very good as long as we focus on the little things,” she added. “We have to make sure we do the little things so the big picture fits together.”
Matelski knows a thing or two about turning small successes into big wins.
She began her college career as a sophomore, playing primarily on the right side, but began moving to the back last season as she was too valuable a player to swap out.
The kills have always been there for the 6-foot-3, power-packed hitter. They went from 260 as a sophomore to 363 last season, and the rest of the stats followed.
She added 260 digs, 76 blocks and 40 aces. What was the secret? Something that might not seem like much, but it adds up.
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“Above all, I’m trying hard and doing everything I can to get to the next ball,” she said.
Petoskey head coach Megan Tompkins, a strong hitter herself during her Petoskey days, knows she is blessed with the front row she has with Matelski and Brynn Jonker at the top.
“Brynn in the middle and Caitlyn on the right side are huge and can make a big block and hit some balls,” Tompkins said. “It was just cool to see. I’ve watched them play since they were freshmen and now they’re at the senior level. The effort they’ve put in has been great. I’m really excited about our offense this season.”
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Matelski had another great offseason, from summer camp tours to games with her travel team to high school workouts as the season approached.
“It was a really busy summer,” Matelski said. “I had a lot of training. I did a lot of college work, writing emails, going to camps and stuff. On June 25th we went to Florida and played there. I think we finished third in our gold division.”
All of the offseason work and seasons Matelski has had over the past few years have given her some big goals heading into this season, and she also plans to keep this group together as long as possible.
“One of my biggest goals is I want to get over 1,000 kills in the years that I’m here,” she said. “Another goal is to really make it far in the district and regional championships, then we’ll see.”
For Matelski, the thought of being a senior and battling Petoskey again is crazy. She’s embracing the leadership role. That includes encouraging others to take on their own focus.
“I just felt it. I’m a really big kid now,” Matelski says, laughing. “I tried my best to be a leader and help everyone. I didn’t necessarily coach them, but just told them little things that we can all work on as a whole.”
There’s that little word again.
Contact Sports Editor Drew Kochanny or send him game stats/information at [email protected]. Follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter, @DrewKochanny, and Instagram, @drewkochanny
