Crown Point’s Ariana Schutt got a later start in soccer than most of her peers.
But it’s fair to say Schutt has made up for lost time. The speedy junior forward is having a breakout season for the Bulldogs.
“Before soccer, I did cheer and gymnastics, and it just got really boring,” Schutt said. “The cheering part, I didn’t like how I was on the sidelines cheering for other people. I wanted to be in something that was more competitive and aggressive, and I wanted to be able to use my speed for something.”
Schutt has used that and more to score 13 goals for the Duneland Athletic Conference champion Bulldogs (14-3-3), who will play defending Class 3A state champion Hamilton Southeastern (21-0) in the Kokomo Semistate at 4:30 p.m. Saturday. It will be a rematch of a 2025 semistate that the Royals won 5-1.
Schutt is tied for the team lead in goals with sophomore midfielder Lily Maldonado and also has five assists. Schutt’s latest goal came during Crown Point’s shootout victory over Mishawaka Marian in a regional championship game last week.
Schutt relied on little more than her speed to earn varsity time as a freshman. But she added more dimensions to her game last season while she played a supporting role behind then-senior stars Addy Sabau and Hannah Pesich, and she finished with eight goals and 10 assists.
“She’s probably the fastest girl, at least in the attack, that I’ve ever coached,” Crown Point coach David Bock said. “But I think she’s become so much more than that. Her growth has stood out to me over the last three years because she earned opportunities on varsity as a freshman because of her speed.
“On her club team, she didn’t get opportunities with the top group when she was younger because she was very unpolished. Her technical skills weren’t necessarily where they felt they needed to be. But we played her in a different position than they did. She played more on the wing for us, and she’s just taken off from there.”
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Maldonado’s older sister Sophia, a senior midfielder, said that growth stems from what she considers Schutt’s greatest strength.
“My favorite part about sharing the field with her is if you play a ball a little too far, she’ll always work her hardest to get there,” Sophia Maldonado said. “She’s a very hardworking player, and she helps everyone else around her become better.”
Schutt, whose work ethic has fueled her rise since she started playing soccer, isn’t the only elite high school athlete in her family. Her brother Brayden is a senior running back for Crown Point’s undefeated football team.
Both Schutt siblings have expressed interest in playing in college. But Ariana Schutt is realistic about what it would take to get there and isn’t willing to force the wrong fit to continue playing.
“As of right now, I want to keep moving forward with the seniors as much as I can, and then as a senior, I want to be able to create another breakout season for myself,” she said. “I want to finish off really well, knowing it could be my last season if I don’t end up getting any offers.
“If I do, I would love to play in college. That’s a big dream of mine. But it all depends on if I can get an education with the sport because education is a really big deal for me. So it would have to be a really good school with a good soccer team.”
Schutt, who hopes to pursue a career in the medical field, has already gotten far more out of soccer than she imagined when she went searching for a sport that was more her speed.
“I’ve learned a lot even though I started late, and I’m super grateful for how far I’ve come so fast and how I’ve gotten to the level I’m at despite starting at age 10,” she said. “I think it shows that if you put in a lot of hard work, it will pay off and you will get where you want to go.”
Noah Poser is a freelance reporter.