Notre Dame’s Maddy Chinn named top volleyball player in the state

Senior outside hitter learns of honor in special surprise ceremony today in front of student body.

Notre Dame Prep senior Madeline Chinn was named Michigan's Miss Volleyball for 2018 today, and while it may have come as a surprise for Chinn when the honor was announced in front of fellow students today in Notre Dame's gym, it wasn't for those who know her.

In fact, according to NDPMA athletic director Betty Wroubel who is Chinn's volleyball coach, the honor seemed almost predestined.

"From the day that Maddy stepped onto our campus, I knew she was a special player due to her immediate and positive impact on our program," said Wroubel, whose Fighting Irish team plays this evening in the MHSAA quarterfinal at Goodrich where they will take on Detroit Communication School for Media and Arts. "She is a good teammate, very competitive, has a great volleyball IQ and works hard to be the success that she is."

The Irish are pursuing their second consecutive state championship and their fourth overall. 

The Miss Volleyball award is voted on by varsity volleyball coaches who are Michigan Interscholastic Volleyball Coaches Association members as well. The award is based on performance throughout a player’s high school career with emphasis on their senior year and those that represent characteristics of scholarship, sportsmanship and citizenship.

Like Chinn, her teammate and fellow outside hitter senior Natalie Risi also was a finalist for the Miss Volleyball award this year. In 2014, Notre Dame Prep alum Katherine Carlson, who plays now for Valparaiso University, was named Miss Volleyball for Michigan. The Valpo senior and her Crusader teammates are currently 22-9, 9-7 and close out the regular season next weekend.

Chinn, who carries a cumulative GPA of 3.98, and was inducted into the National Honor Society as a sophomore, will be attending and playing volleyball next year for Purdue University.

For Wroubel, who still has some important unfinished business in the current MHSAA playoffs, Chinn will be missed not only for her skills on the court, but everything else she brings to her team, her school and the community.

"Maddy has worked with the Michigan Special Olympics in both the sport of volleyball and soccer over the years," Wroubel said. "Recently, she planned, coordinated and participated in a volleyball event with Special Olympics of Michigan athletes. As far as volleyball, she comes in early and leaves late after practices so that she can improve her already stellar game. In fact, Maddy is our most decorated and recruited athlete of any sports in our school’s history. She is a joy to work with and will be sorely missed next fall as she moves on to Purdue."

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Comments or questions? mkelly@ndpma.org.
 
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About Notre Dame Preparatory School and Marist Academy
Notre Dame Preparatory School and Marist Academy is a private, Catholic, independent, coeducational day school located in Oakland County. The school's upper division enrolls students in grades nine through twelve and has been named one of the nation's best 50 Catholic high schools (Acton Institute) four times since 2005. Notre Dame's middle and lower divisions enroll students in jr. kindergarten through grade eight. All three divisions are International Baccalaureate "World Schools." NDPMA is conducted by the Marist Fathers and Brothers and is accredited by the Independent Schools Association of the Central States and the North Central Association Commission on Accreditation and School Improvement. For more on Notre Dame Preparatory School and Marist Academy, visit the school's home page at www.ndpma.org