Emily Kulak
Special to The Leader
Lakewood, N.Y., native Matthew Johnson joined the Fredonia sports family as the new women’s tennis head coach in July of this year. Johnson returns to western New York after studying biology and chemistry at Berry College in Mount Berry, Ga.
Biology wasn’t all he was studying. While pursuing his degree and playing on the men’s tennis team at Berry, Johnson was getting his certification from the United States Professional Tennis Association.
Fredonia was a logical choice for him as the opening of the head coach position lined up perfectly with his graduation.
Now, just three months out after graduating, Johnson is already head coaching a Division III team. Certainly an impressive feat at such a young age.
He seems to have an optimistic outlook about the transition from college player to college coach.
“My last season was in May, so I think I have a fresh new perspective that I can bring,” Johnson said.
His players certainly agree. Avril King, a junior journalism and public relations double major at Fredonia (and an assistant copy editor with The Leader), had only great things to say about Johnson.
“Coach Johnson is a great leader and role model,” King said. “This is the first time in a while that I’ve felt like I’ve been getting better as a player instead of staying the same skill-wise.”
That praise holds a lot of weight coming from one of the veteran athletes on the team.
Johnson isn’t worried about how his colleagues will see his age as a factor in his coaching abilities. When asked about the subject, he cites setting boundaries at the team level as the first place to start.
Interestingly enough, another Johnson joined the team this fall as well. Freshman Mikayla Johnson happens to be coach Johnson’s younger sister. She is already showing great promise after being awarded SUNYAC Women’s Tennis Player of the Week following her first matches as a collegiate player.
Johnson is not concerned about any signs of special treatment or favoritism toward the younger Johnson.
“It’s an interesting dynamic,” said Johnson. “Jane and Anna are sisters on the team and now we have Matthew and Mikayla. It’s a whole family affair.”
With Mikayla Johnson receiving SUNYAC recognition in week one and teammate Anna Chiacchia featured as a “Top Devil” in week two, it looks like Johnson was a good coaching choice.
Johnson plans on continuing his education at Fredonia with a master’s degree in education. It is still undecided on whether that will be focused on tennis or biology. Based on the team’s stats and accolades so far, let’s hope he chooses tennis.