Andrew Hopman coaches both the boys and girls volleyball teams at Old Bridge High School.
His boys’ volleyball team is quite literally the best team in the state, with two consecutive NJSIAA state championships on its record.
The male Knights won their most recent state title with a 2-1 victory over Fair Lawn High School on June 6 at South Brunswick High School. They have a 74-7 record over the past two seasons.
Hopman’s girls’ volleyball team is not yet on the same level, but he wants to get it there. In 2019, the veteran coach is doing everything in his power to lay the groundwork for the future.
Hopman is stacking the lower rungs of the program, junior varsity and freshmen, with hordes of young talent. He is also pitting the young players against the varsity players in practices. He is even making everybody practice for 90 minutes after scrimmages.
In August before the regular season started, Hopman would hold 90-minute sessions even after the Knights returned to Old Bridge from away scrimmages.
The coach is stocking his farm system and working all the players extra hard. This approach is how Hopman built the male Knights into the best program in the state.
Now, those Knights also had a loaded varsity roster the last two years. To get the female Knights to the same level, Hopman will also need great talent. But he is confident that the female Knights have a lot of natural ability, and that the hard work will transform the talent into an elite unit.
“We’re trying to build another state power,” Hopman said.
“When we had those extra 90 minute practices, no one complained,” the coach added. “We’ll keep getting better if we keep that same attitude.”
Hopman has 17 freshmen and 10 sophomores in the girls’ program. Five freshmen are playing on the junior varsity team and another, Leena Tran, is starting as a middle blocker on the varsity squad. Two sophomores, Abby DeWitt and Abby Russ, are also playing on varsity as outside hitters.
This Old Bridge girls’ volleyball season is about getting players reps and laying that groundwork for the future. But Hopman thinks Old Bridge can win varsity games now, too.
Old Bridge’s varsity lineup includes two senior outside hitters in Paige Nugent and Aurora Curri. Both are returning starters and solid attackers and passers.
The lineup also features two other seniors in middle blocker Andrea Teslya and libero Emi Thia. Junior Olivia Tuohy is a returning starter at setter.
“She’s really good and we’re expecting big things out of her,” Hopman said of Tuohy.
He has similar feelings about the rest of that group, too. But Old Bridge did lose its regular season opener, 2-1, at South Brunswick on Sept. 3.
Hopman said the varsity team needs to learn to play faster. Then it can start to compete with elite clubs.
But even if that doesn’t happen this fall, the coach knows how to make it happen in the long run, and he is actively implementing his plan every day.
“We hope it pays off down the road,” he said.
