From One Big Family to Another
Oct 13, 2022 | Women's Basketball, Sports Extra
By: D. Scott Fritchen
In order to know Eliza Maupin, you start with the family. She always had somebody to talk to. She had so many built-in best friends. She's one of 12 children to Micah and Heather Maupin. Six children are biological and six are adopted. There's Eliza and Isaiah, Malachi, Olyvia, Luke, Myah, Adele, Silas, Ezra, Saul, Titus and Nia. They range between 9 and 22 years old.
"My family is strong believers in God," Eliza says. "My parents said, 'We're going to adopt because that's what we've been called to do.' They adopted Nia when she was 10 days old and then it went from there.
"It just kept going and going."
Eliza loves her family. She loves every one of her siblings. However, her biggest challenge growing up in Webster Groves, Missouri, was finding her place in the family, simply because there were so many personalities and so many people.
"It wasn't all about you," she says. "That was difficult as a kid. I'd say I was the peacemaker. I was the kind of person to try and calm people down. I tried to be the odd one out. I'm very reserved. I felt like that's where I found myself in my family."
For being reserved, Eliza certainly stood out on the basketball court. Eliza arrived at Kansas State on June 4 as the 21st-rated player in the Class of 2022 by Prep Girls Hoops Missouri. Last season, Eliza, a 6-foot-3 forward, averaged 15.3 points while shooting 61% from the floor, including 34% on 3-pointers, and she averaged 7.5 rebounds, 2.1 assists and 1.7 steals at Webster Groves High School. She earned Class 5 All-State honors and she was named Class 5 District 2 Player of the Year. As a junior, she helped Webster Groves to a Missouri Class 6 state runner-up finish.
She had a rather large cheering section — when her siblings weren't playing their own sports.
"In high school, especially, we weren't required, but it was recommended that we played a sport or did something outside of school just so we had something to do," she says. "I have a very athletic family — basketball, soccer, baseball. I don't even know. There were so many sports going on. It's a very competitive family."
Basketball was Eliza's first love. She learned her competitiveness by trying to beat her brothers on the basketball court in the backyard. She was 7.
"That racked up the competitiveness within me because I wanted to beat my brothers," she says. "They always said that I could never beat them, which may or may not be true. That motivated me to keep going."
By all accounts, Eliza is very athletic and fast and sees the floor and can shoot. If head coach Jeff Mittie needs Eliza to high jump, she can do that, too.
As a freshman at Webster Groves, she won the Missouri Class 5 state championship in the high jump — her first year of organized track and field competition. She won the state championship again in 2021. She was a natural.
"I was like, 'I'm going to try high jump and see how it goes,'" she says, chuckling. "I tried it out and jumped 5-foot-7 and was like, 'How did I do that?' I loved high jumping, just doing backflips over a pole. That's super cool."
For all of Eliza's talent on the basketball court, she was lightly recruited. She didn't play AAU basketball, which limited her exposure. She was a hidden treasure. K-State assistant coach Ebony Haliburton entered her life during her sophomore season.
"Coach Haliburton actually came to one of my volleyball games, and she was like, 'I'm Coach Hal from K-State basketball,'" Eliza says. "I was so confused. I was like, 'Wow, you're here to see me.'"
Eliza committed to K-State for good her senior year.
What set K-State apart from other Division I schools?
"Just the family feel," Eliza says. "I really liked the coaches. I loved the campus and how it wasn't a big city and had a campus feel and was a college town. I liked all of those things. The players were amazing to me when I came, so I just really loved that aspect of K-State."
She's fitting in just fine as the Wildcats practice and head toward their exhibition opener against Fort Hays State on October 31 at Bramlage Coliseum.
"The season is coming up and sometimes it feels like I just moved in and I'm like, 'How is this possible?'" she says. "Other times it feels like I've been here so long. The transition has gone pretty smooth. My family is five and a half hours away, but it's not too far. They've visited me a weekend or two. Things have gone pretty smooth."
She's working to find her spot on the team.
"I feel like I'm still figuring that out," she says, "but I can be a really good passer or just complement others in their game as well as playing to my best ability. Whether that's passing or shooting, I don't know yet. Practice is a lot faster paced than in high school, but it's really fun. I like practice. I love it."
She has goals for this season.
"I want to improve my game, improve my communication, and be a leader where I can be as a freshman, and just have fun," she says. "Big goal right there — have fun."
Eliza envisions herself wearing the K-State uniform for the first time. She thinks about playing at Bramlage for the first time. There will be plenty of firsts along the way. She's going to soak in every moment.
"I'm really looking forward to putting on the uniform, it's like, 'Oh yeah, this is it, it's time to go,'" she says. "The Octagon of Doom is so cool. It just puts the pressure on whoever comes into the gym. You've got to be ready."
And Eliza is ready to contribute in any say she can during her freshman season.
Her family will be so proud.
In order to know Eliza Maupin, you start with the family. She always had somebody to talk to. She had so many built-in best friends. She's one of 12 children to Micah and Heather Maupin. Six children are biological and six are adopted. There's Eliza and Isaiah, Malachi, Olyvia, Luke, Myah, Adele, Silas, Ezra, Saul, Titus and Nia. They range between 9 and 22 years old.
"My family is strong believers in God," Eliza says. "My parents said, 'We're going to adopt because that's what we've been called to do.' They adopted Nia when she was 10 days old and then it went from there.
"It just kept going and going."
Eliza loves her family. She loves every one of her siblings. However, her biggest challenge growing up in Webster Groves, Missouri, was finding her place in the family, simply because there were so many personalities and so many people.
"It wasn't all about you," she says. "That was difficult as a kid. I'd say I was the peacemaker. I was the kind of person to try and calm people down. I tried to be the odd one out. I'm very reserved. I felt like that's where I found myself in my family."
For being reserved, Eliza certainly stood out on the basketball court. Eliza arrived at Kansas State on June 4 as the 21st-rated player in the Class of 2022 by Prep Girls Hoops Missouri. Last season, Eliza, a 6-foot-3 forward, averaged 15.3 points while shooting 61% from the floor, including 34% on 3-pointers, and she averaged 7.5 rebounds, 2.1 assists and 1.7 steals at Webster Groves High School. She earned Class 5 All-State honors and she was named Class 5 District 2 Player of the Year. As a junior, she helped Webster Groves to a Missouri Class 6 state runner-up finish.
She had a rather large cheering section — when her siblings weren't playing their own sports.
"In high school, especially, we weren't required, but it was recommended that we played a sport or did something outside of school just so we had something to do," she says. "I have a very athletic family — basketball, soccer, baseball. I don't even know. There were so many sports going on. It's a very competitive family."
Basketball was Eliza's first love. She learned her competitiveness by trying to beat her brothers on the basketball court in the backyard. She was 7.
"That racked up the competitiveness within me because I wanted to beat my brothers," she says. "They always said that I could never beat them, which may or may not be true. That motivated me to keep going."
By all accounts, Eliza is very athletic and fast and sees the floor and can shoot. If head coach Jeff Mittie needs Eliza to high jump, she can do that, too.
As a freshman at Webster Groves, she won the Missouri Class 5 state championship in the high jump — her first year of organized track and field competition. She won the state championship again in 2021. She was a natural.
"I was like, 'I'm going to try high jump and see how it goes,'" she says, chuckling. "I tried it out and jumped 5-foot-7 and was like, 'How did I do that?' I loved high jumping, just doing backflips over a pole. That's super cool."
For all of Eliza's talent on the basketball court, she was lightly recruited. She didn't play AAU basketball, which limited her exposure. She was a hidden treasure. K-State assistant coach Ebony Haliburton entered her life during her sophomore season.
"Coach Haliburton actually came to one of my volleyball games, and she was like, 'I'm Coach Hal from K-State basketball,'" Eliza says. "I was so confused. I was like, 'Wow, you're here to see me.'"
Eliza committed to K-State for good her senior year.
What set K-State apart from other Division I schools?
"Just the family feel," Eliza says. "I really liked the coaches. I loved the campus and how it wasn't a big city and had a campus feel and was a college town. I liked all of those things. The players were amazing to me when I came, so I just really loved that aspect of K-State."
She's fitting in just fine as the Wildcats practice and head toward their exhibition opener against Fort Hays State on October 31 at Bramlage Coliseum.
"The season is coming up and sometimes it feels like I just moved in and I'm like, 'How is this possible?'" she says. "Other times it feels like I've been here so long. The transition has gone pretty smooth. My family is five and a half hours away, but it's not too far. They've visited me a weekend or two. Things have gone pretty smooth."
She's working to find her spot on the team.
"I feel like I'm still figuring that out," she says, "but I can be a really good passer or just complement others in their game as well as playing to my best ability. Whether that's passing or shooting, I don't know yet. Practice is a lot faster paced than in high school, but it's really fun. I like practice. I love it."
She has goals for this season.
"I want to improve my game, improve my communication, and be a leader where I can be as a freshman, and just have fun," she says. "Big goal right there — have fun."
Eliza envisions herself wearing the K-State uniform for the first time. She thinks about playing at Bramlage for the first time. There will be plenty of firsts along the way. She's going to soak in every moment.
"I'm really looking forward to putting on the uniform, it's like, 'Oh yeah, this is it, it's time to go,'" she says. "The Octagon of Doom is so cool. It just puts the pressure on whoever comes into the gym. You've got to be ready."
And Eliza is ready to contribute in any say she can during her freshman season.
Her family will be so proud.
Players Mentioned
F
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