SARATOGA SPRINGS – Chloe Boutelle, a member of Saratoga Springs High School’s (SSHS) class of 2011, is currently part of a select group that has reached the second round of nominees for the 2015 NCAA Woman of the Year award. Boutelle was recognized for her standout two-sport career as a member of the Nordic skiing and cross-country squads for Division II St. Michael’s College in Vermont.
Currently, Boutelle is one of 147 conference and independent nominees from around the country, and one of only 39 from a Division II college. A record 480 women were originally put forward as candidates for the award. She is a representative of the Eastern Intercollegiate Ski Association, which includes Division I schools Harvard University and the University of Vermont. St. Michael’s College is a member of the Northeast-10 (NE-10) conference.
While at SSHS, Boutelle was a member of the school’s initial Nordic ski team as a sophomore. “We joined a very competitive league, with strong squads from Shenendehowa and Lake George,” Boutelle said. By her senior year, she had progressed to the point that she the high school’s first representative to go to the state tournament. She also was on the school’s cross-country team, and a member of the soccer squad as well.
It was during those years that “…I learned a lot about motivating teammates and working together,” she said. “This worked both ways. I remember during a cross-country training trip to Chula Vista, CA, we were on a grueling course on an island. It was tough going, but one of my teammates – Grace Hungerford – reached back and pulled me forward to spur me on.”
So even though she was striving for individual excellence in her chosen college sports, because of her grounding at SSHS, Boutelle was never far from being aware of the importance of the team dynamic:
“It’s been an interesting transition,” she said. “I had always played soccer growing up, which is more of a ‘pure’ team sport. So I had to adopt a different mindset mentally. But it’s always more satisfying if the team wins versus any individual awards.”
This was further evidenced by her reaction to receiving the nomination, where she emphasized her teammates:
“I am humbled and grateful to have been nominated for this honor,” said Boutelle. “I'm excited that this gives recognition to (St. Michael’s) Nordic skiing team, which has grown and become stronger over the past few years.”
The NCAA Woman of the Year program honors the academic achievements, athletics excellence, community service and leadership of graduating female college athletes from all three divisions. To be eligible, nominees must have competed and earned a varsity letter in an NCAA-sponsored sport and must have completed eligibility in her primary sport.
At St. Michael’s, Chloe Boutelle truly blossomed. She qualified four times for NE-10 Conference’s All-Conference cross-country accolades. Boutelle also claimed her third career United States Collegiate Ski Coaches Association National Collegiate All-Academic Ski Team nod as a senior while pacing the Purple Knights in five races during her final season. A captain for both the women's cross country and Nordic skiing programs as a senior, Boutelle claimed her third NE-10 Academic All-Conference accolade for cross country while capping off a career during which she qualified for the NE-10 Commissioner's Honor Roll in seven semesters, studying abroad in the eighth.
Having received her degree, Boutelle intends to pursue graduate school in the fall. He goal is to become a registered dietitian.
The NCAA Woman of the Year selection committee will have two more cut down rounds. Ultimately, the members of the NCAA Committee on Women's Athletics will select the 2015 NCAA Woman of the Year from the top nine finalists, with the 2015 NCAA Woman of the Year announcement at an awards dinner in Indianapolis on Sunday, October 18.
For more information about NCAA Woman of the Year, visit www.ncaa.org/WOTY.
