Douthett named top prep student/athlete in state

Senior was part of three championships this year for the Falcons.

By: Neil Hay
   For Whitney Douthett, it was never about awards, trophies and plaques.
   For Douthett, it was always about playing the games, having fun, making friends, being a teammate and leader, and, yes, winning championships.
   So when she was presented by the NJISAA with the Jan Baker Award last Wednesday at the weekly Peddie community meeting, Douthett was caught by surprise.
   The award is presented annually to the top prep female student-athlete in the state. The 17-year old senior (she turns 18 the day before Christmas) knew she was in the running when Susan Cabot, the athletic director, informed her she had been nominated. But when nothing further was mentioned, Douthett thought it was going to someone else.
   "I had no idea. When Mrs. Cabot didn’t mention it, I thought it was done. Jan Baker presented the award to me at the end of the community meeting. I was really honored just to be nominated, let alone win it."
   The Jan Baker Award capped an incredible senior year for Douthett, who lives in Newtown, PA. A three-sport athlete, Douthett captained the soccer, basketball, and lacrosse teams to state Prep A championships this year. For her achievements on the field she carried home Most Outstanding Player for soccer and lacrosse, and the Coach’s Award for basketball. At Sunday’s graduation she also claimed the Winant Cup as Peddie’s top scholar-athlete.
   "Oh, God! All my trophies are going in boxes," said Douthett. "They are taking up a lot of room. I am putting them down in the basement."
   Not many athletes can say they won a state championship in any one year. But three in one year proves Douthett was a young woman for all seasons.
   "Three state titles, that’s awesome."
   Douthett and company collected titles the way some people collect shoes. Throughout her four years Peddie was the best in basketball and soccer. But this spring the circle of athletic successes was completed when the Falcons added the lacrosse championship, the team’s first. That’s nine state titles and 12 varsity letters, for those keeping score at home.
   "We knew this was the year for lacrosse if we were going to win it. It’s great to cap it off."
   In about three months Douthett and her A average will head up to Dartmouth, where her academic and athletic career take a new turn. Presently she is undecided about a course of study. "I’ll test a lot of things and see where I am headed."
   Other than playing at the intramural level, it appears Douthett will not go out for varsity basketball. "Three sports at Dartmouth would be too much. No way."
   But she fully intends to play soccer this fall and lacrosse in the spring. Douthett is looking forward to new pursuits and new successes: Dartmouth usually advances to the Sweet 16 in the NCAA soccer tournament, while in lacrosse Dartmouth is a top 10 team.
   Douthett will spend the summer working at basketball camps and working out to be in shape and ready to go for the start of soccer season which begins in early September. Classes don’t begin until later that month, but soccer pre-season gets underway August 20th. Asked what position she would like to play, Douthett replied, "I will play anything as long as I play." In lacrosse, Douthett will probably go at midfield.
   So much is happening right now. Graduation marks the end of one era; the beginning of another. Four years pass in a blur. Championships, accolades, honors. Time to look back; time to look ahead.
   "Right now I am kind of in shock," admitted Douthett as she was getting ready to go out to a graduation party. "When I was (at Peddie) four years there seemed to go so slow. Now it seemed like I was a freshman yesterday. I am in a frenzy now. It hasn’t hit me yet that I’ve graduated high school. The last couple of weeks I was sitting back and enjoying the end of my high school career, spending time with friends for the last time. I’ve been off a week and it seems like a lifetime."
   It seemed to her that Douthett never had more than a week off at the end of lacrosse season before she turned to another activity, another sport, to consume her time. But like all outstanding student-athletes, Douthett relished the opportunity to play sports and flourished in the classroom at the same time. She listed the plusses of playing sports fall into winter into spring: the ability to manage time; to make and learn from personal sacrifices for the betterment of the team; to make so many great friends she might not otherwise have made without sports.
   "I’ll definitely miss Peddie a lot. Peddie is a closed community, where everyone knows who you are. It will be different at Dartmouth, but I can’t wait."
   Asked about going from being a big-fish-in-a-small-pond to a small-fish-in-a- big-pond, Douthett said, "Yeah, it’ll be a shock. But I am getting prepared."
   Don’t be surprised if Douthett brings home to Newtown some more awards and trophies before her playing days at Dartmouth are done.