Utterback off to fast start for Vermont women

The Vermont women’s basketball team had defeated Canisius last weekend when the latter’s coach, Scott Hemer, voiced what others were surely thinking:

“Man, I love watching No. 23 play,” Hemer told Catamounts coach Alisa Kresge during the postgame handshake.

This is the type of reaction freshman point guard Emma Utterback has triggered in her first 10 games as a Division I women’s basketball player. The former Center Grove star, one of four Vermont players who have started every game this season, averages 11.3 points, 5.1 rebounds and 1.6 assists.

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On Monday, Utterback was named the America East Conference rookie of the week for a second time this season.

Talk about your first impressions.

Utterback produced 14 points and six assists in a victory over Norwich. In the aforementioned home game against Canisius, which Vermont won by 23 points, the 5-foot-8 Utterback finished with 15 points, eight rebounds, two assists and a pair of steals.

Kresge, who appreciated Utterback’s competitive nature and quick hands on defense, was shocked by the freshman’s willingness to take on a greater workload in an attempt to become a more complete basketball player.

“The one thing that surprised me about Emma is she’s such a student of the game,” said Kresge, whose squad takes a 4-6 record into Saturday’s home game against NJIT. “Emma will ask for game film of every opponent, and that’s really something you don’t see from players.

“I have great faith in her and am happy she’s running our team right now. She just plays so hard.”

Faced with the challenge of furthering her academic and athletic pursuits 900 miles and four states northeast of her comfort zone, Utterback credits being on campus early for her seemingly effortless transition.

She arrived in Burlington, Vermont, on June 28 to begin basketball workouts and take two summer classes. She returned home in early August for a little over two weeks before starting fall semester classes Aug. 26.

As is custom with Utterback, she applies her never-ending supply of energy toward working on improving specific aspects of her game, be it perimeter shooting or defensive positioning so as not to draw early fouls.

She admits to missing her family but has come to realize it’s part of growing up.

“I am extremely biased because I go here, but this is probably the most beautiful college campus I’ve ever seen,” Utterback said. “The people are so welcoming, so it hasn’t been a bad transition. Being a freshman and being so far away, you can’t go home on weekends. You have to learn to be an individual.

“When you’re in high school you depend a lot on your parents for a lot of things. I think I’ve matured in that way of just being more independent.”

Early in the season, Vermont traveled to the Midwest for games at Loyola (Chicago) and Minnesota. That allowed Utterback an opportunity to have her name announced as a starter in front of those persons closest to her.

Utterback didn’t disappoint, scoring a team-high 19 points in Vermont’s two-point loss to Loyola and netting 14 to go along with six rebounds against the Golden Gophers two days later. These were Utterback’s second and third games a Catamounts starter.

“I definitely think with my hard work that starting was a huge goal of mine,” Utterback said. “It was very rewarding, especially getting to do it in front of my family. For everything my mom and dad have done for me, they were both so happy for me.”