New Richmond – Maddie Clark has the “Wheeling Feeling.”
No, not the one six football teams get each year immediately after Thanksgiving. Clark’s signals a new chapter in a story that’s been filled with highs with the Wheeling Feeling just the latest one after signing her National Letter of Intent to play college basketball at Wheeling University on Nov. 17.
Though she’s already had a career most players dream of, there’s still more to accomplish. It’s a hunger that comes from tasting success at the highest level.
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For most players who play high school basketball in West Virginia, it’s enough to make it to the Charleston Coliseum and Convention Center and play in that 10,000-seat venue.
Maddie Clark doesn’t fall into that group. She’s never known anything less than playing on the final Saturday of the season. With a pair of state championship victories in 2021 and ’23 sandwiching a runner-up finish in ’22 anything less is a failure. She boasts an 8-1 career record on the Coliseum floor.
Success is embedded in the DNA of the Wyoming East girls program which has sustained success unlike any other in state since winning its first title in 2016. Clark is the latest star at the forefront of the program’s success, though she took a different route to stardom.
“I didn’t know if I even wanted to play ball,” Clark said. “I just wanted to win. I wanted to play with Sky (Davidson) and they were good. Sky always went to the state tournaments so I wanted to watch them and I wanted to be like them and play like them.”
Clark’s always been a natural athlete but needed to refine her skills in order to stick. East had relied on younger players since the start of its run in 2015 and in a different capacity, Clark was asked to contribute.
The groups that preceded Clark had players that were polished and expected to be stars from the jump. And they made good on those promises in the form of state championship appearances. Before Clark arrived in New Richmond East had nine first-team all-states selections and three state championship game appearances from 2015-20.
With a talented group of sophomores and a pair of experienced seniors Clark didn’t need to step into the spotlight. She could play in a specialized role and get used to it.
“I was nervous the whole time my freshman year, especially at the state tournament,” Clark said. “It was so big and so bright. I remember I was sweating and as soon as we got out there I was scared but Sky and them made it better. Once we kept playing I just got used to it. I’ve been blessed to be able to keep going back and now it’s not scary anymore.”
Clark turned out to be a key bench player during the ’21 title run and figured to be another key role player heading into ’22. But by necessity she became the team’s best player after graduation, injuries and transfers took four returners pout of the picture.
She responded with an all-state campaign that ended in a state championship game loss.
“It was definitely the growth from my freshman year to my sophomore year that opened my eyes,” Clark said. “My sophomore year I had to start and just seeing that change and all the success that came with it just made me want to play at the next level.”
After a regular season in which East appeared to have taken a step back, Clark led the charge in a postseason push that put the Lady Warriors back on top in a state championship win against Summers County.
She added all-state captain honors after the season as well, becoming the third player in program history to do so.
But more importantly she did something her predecessors hadn’t – she won multiple state championships as a player. It was one of the few things East hadn’t accomplished.
Before this chapter wraps she hopes to end it on a high note with a few other accolades that would be hard to topple.
If her senior class wins a third state championship this season, it would be the first in Wyoming County history to do so since the Mullens Class of 1984 did so. East has also never won back to back state titles, another box that would be checked if Clark and Co. can close out how they want. She has the chance to finish her career as the most accomplished athlete not just in program history, but school history as well.
“It’s actually bittersweet,” Clark said. “You work had to accomplish those things and you can’t really even explain the feeling but you also know it’s coming to an end. It’s the best feeling ever to win and be in that spot and just knowing you’re up there with everybody else that has accomplished those things is the best feeling.”
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After finishing in New Richmond Clark will again be in the same spot she was four years ago. She’ll be asked to contribute to a program on the upswing instead of immediately stepping in the spotlight.
Wheeling felt like home from the jump and head coach Anna Kowalska has a proven track record of success having previously guided WVU Tech to national tournament appearances during her time in Beckley.
“I like the community,” Clark said. “You have everything you need up there, the coach is really sweet and I like the color red.”
Before the next chapter begins she wants to enjoy this one. She plays her best not when she’s overthinking the game, but letting her natural instincts take over. She’s trying to take that same approach before she trades in her green for red.
“It’s really sad actually, so I don’t talk about it,” Clark said. “But I’m excited.”
