The Manchester Enterprise
A Heritage Newspaper
Weekly Publication
FROM DUTCH TO DUTCH
Mutchler to persue teaching degree, play basketball at Hope
By Ed Patino, Staff Writer
PUBLISHED: July 10, 2008
High school sports have always been an enjoyable and rewarding experience for Amanda Mutchler.
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After all, the recent Manchester High School graduate was a three-sport standout in basketball, volleyball and track, where she accepted leadership roles and earned multiple team and All-Conference honors in each. Mutchler also strived for excellence in the classroom, graduating with a 4.18 grade point average while taking an active role in many school organizations.
For her efforts, Mutchler is recognized as one of Manchester's top scholar athletes for 2008.
Mutchler was a four-year player on both the Manchester basketball and volleyball teams, and was a three-year athlete in track. Throughout her career, Mutchler has amassed four All-Cascades Conference First Team awards, twice received All-Area recognition and was honored by her teammates several times. She also served as a senior captain on both the basketball and volleyball teams.
"I love playing sports, and everyone of them is fun in some way," Mutchler said. "Playing sports is not only a fun social activity, but it teaches you a lot about life."
One of Mutchler's biggest honors came during her graduation ceremony June 8, when she was named co-winner of the Ms. Dutchman award with basketball and volleyball teammate, fellow scholar-athlete and best friend Julie Fielder. Both of them also received the Manchester Athletic Booster Scholarship.
"We were happy to get the scholarship, then Mr. Gall asked both Julie and I to stay on stage," Mutchler said. "I knew that Ms. Dutchman was coming up, but didn't know which one of us was going to win. When Mr. Gall said we both won, Julie and I gave each other a big hug and had huge smiles on our faces. That was a proud moment."
Mutchler had many big moments as a member of the Manchester varsity girls basketball team. She made the varsity team as a freshman and eventually became a co-captain. She was named the team's Most Improved Player her junior year and Most Valuable Player as a senior. Mutchler also received All-Cascades First Team honors and made the girls basketball All-Area teams from the Ann Arbor News and Jackson Citizen Patriot.
On Jan. 18, Mutchler scored eight points, grabbed six rebounds and forced six steals as the Flying Dutch upended defending Cascades champion Michigan Center. In her final prep game Feb. 23, she had 13 points, seven rebounds and two steals in the Division 3 district quarterfinals against Clinton.
"Amanda has really grown and turned out to be a great leader," Manchester girls basketball coach Cori Kastel said. "She's a vocal leader with a great work ethic and plays hard all the time."
Mutchler began playing basketball in fifth grade, and it's the sport she feels she's the best at. During all four years of high school, Mutchler was a coach in Manchester's Youth Hoops program.
"It gives you a different view of the game, and seeing different things helps you relate to your own coach and makes you a better player," she said.
As a four-year player in volleyball, Mutchler was named the team's Most Improved Player as a junior and received All-Cascades First Team honors as a senior. During her final year, she helped the Manchester volleyball team to a second-place finish in the Cascades and a 25-17-8 record, nearly a 10-game improvement over the previous year.
Mutchler said her proudest moment in volleyball came Sept. 20, 2007 when the Flying Dutch stormed into Napoleon and swept the defending Cascades co-champions in three games. Mutchler had eight kills in the match.
"Everyone came out and played great against Napoleon," she said.
In track, Mutchler began as a distance runner, but made the switch to sprints her senior year. Used as the anchor of the 400, 800 and 1,600 relay teams, Mutchler helped the Dutch win the outright Cascades championship this year and was part of Manchester's league co-championship (with East Jackson) in 2007. The titles came after the Dutch won only one dual meet during her sophomore year.
"Amanda has a wonderful perspective on things and gives her best effort," Manchester track coach John Bancroft said. "She's a tough competitor with a positive outlook. This year she treated all the younger girls like they were seniors and accepted everybody."
She earned first place All-Cascades honors for the 800, 1,600 and 3,200-meter relays as a senior. During Manchester's final home meet, Mutchler teamed with Laura Coltre, Brooke Fuller and Tracy Schaible to set the school record in the 800-meter relay.
"The four of us have a great bond, and it was our only home meet," Mutchler said. "When they announced that we set the record, we were all screaming, jumping and hugging."
Success followed Mutchler to the classroom. She was named to Manchester High School's High Honor Roll in each of her four years. Her 4.18 GPA helped her earn the multiple scholarships, including the Alumni Scholarships from both Manchester High School and Hope College. The Cascades Conference honored her this year with the leagues All-Conference Academic award.
"Doing sports pushes you to get better grades, since you have to maintain your GPA to play," Mutchler said. "I wanted to get into a good college, so that made it even more rewarding."
She was active in school activities during her junior and senior years. Mutchler served on the Student Council, the Spanish Club, Students Against Destructive Decisions and was a member of the National Honor Society.
"I loved being on Student Council because we did a lot to help the school," Mutchler said. "We all became good friends and did lots of fun activities."
Mutchler will attend Hope College this fall to begin persuing a degree in teaching. While she hasn't decided on which level she would like to teach, Mutchler knew it was the field she wanted to go into since third grade. She also became attracted to Hope after touring the campus in Holland and hearing about its Education program.
"My third grade teacher Mrs. Coleius made me want to be a teacher," she said. "When I toured Hope, the people there were very welcoming, and everyone I talked to said they had an amazing experience there."
Kastel, who is a Social Studies teacher at Manchester Middle School, believes Mutchler is perfectly suited for the profession.
"She has a warm and bubbly personality and is a real people person, and that's what you want a teacher to be," Kastel said.
Mutchler will also continue her basketball career in college. She joins one of the nation's powerhouses at Hope, as the Flying Dutch are reigning Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association champions and are two years removed from winning the NCAA Division III National Championship.
"Joining a strong program will help me get better," she said. "The girls there are very talented, and the coach (Brad Morehouse) knows what he's doing."
Staff Writer Ed Patino can be reached at 428-8173 or epatino@heritage.com.
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