NM HIGH SCHOOL “LEGEND OF THE PITCH”
Nicole “Nikki” Knutson…..La Cueva 1993
By: Joe Butler
NMAA Assistant Director
It gives the NMAA great pleasure to recognize Mrs. Nicole “Nikki” Knutson as the “Legend of
the Pitch”, during the 2013 NMAA Sonic Drive-IN State Soccer Championships.
At LaCueva High School Nikki was the embodiment of the term “multi-sport athlete”, earning
letters in soccer, basketball and track for all four years. Of those, soccer was her first passion,
and she demonstrated that by making the LaCueva varsity squad her freshmen season and
taking part in four consecutive state championships. Nikki’s soccer accolades include NM
Coaches Association player of the year in 1992, Tribune athlete of the year 1992-93, State
Leading Scorer 1992, First Team All Metro, All District and All-State 1990, ’91, ’92, 2-year
Bears captain and All-American designation at the mid-field position in 1992 and Maloof
Scholarship recipient. She also found time to play in the Olympic Development Program,
traveling the country playing soccer and competing with and against the best high school
players in the nation.
Current NMAA Executive Director Sally Marquez was the head basketball coach at LaCueva
when Nikki entered. Recognizing her athletic ability Coach Marquez encouraged Nikki to try
out as a freshmen. It was that encouragement that led Nikki to make the LaCueva freshmen
team, coached by current NMAA Associate Director Bill Cleland. Coach Cleland recalled
“Nikki came out late for freshmen basketball because she was on the soccer team. On her first
day she showed up wearing these canvas deck shoes and black socks. My first thought was
“who is this kid and why is she here. Coach Marquez convinced me to give her a try. She
turned out to be a relentless competitor who was the consummate team player. Steals and
assists were all she cared about and she ended up as an excellent point guard and defender
for the Bears during her four year career. She ditched the deck shoes and black socks and
ended up looking like a basketball player as well!” Of that experience Nikki said “I never
intended to play but coach Marquez encouraged me. I thought she was crazy but I did it. It was
fun and I managed to score several points and dish out many assists. I was pretty stellar at
stealing the ball but sometimes my aggressive and feisty soccer style caused me to get into
foul trouble. I also ran track and my primary motivation was to stay in shape for soccer. I
secretly loved it and still run to this day.”
Along with members of her ODP team Nikki was recruited by University of New Mexico head
coach Amy Allman. Allman, a former USA women’s national team goalkeeper, was the first
head coach of the fledgling Lady Lobo women’s soccer team. At UNM Nikki was a 4-year
captain and starter. The underdog Lobos captured the WAC title her sophomore season and
she was named as an All-Conference standout. Nikki earned B.S. degrees in biology and
psychology in 1997 and was president of Pi Beta Phi Sorority. She served as an assistant to
coach John DeWitt at UNM in 1997 and played professionally in Rome for “Lazio” in 1997-98
before returning to UNM to earn her law degree in 2002. Nikki served as an Assistant District
Attorney in Farmington right out of law school before returning to Albuquerque, where she has
been an Executive Customer Representative for Merck Pharmaceuticals for the past nine
years.
The athletic-academic gene most definitely runs through her family as her mom is a gifted
teacher at LaCueva; dad was a former high school soccer coach at Eldorado and trained
soccer officials; brother Eric played soccer at LaCueva and currently teaches at Albuquerque
Academy; sister Kirsten played soccer at Eldorado; and her husband Chris Wall played golf at
UNM from 1994-99 and is a veteran member of PGA tour Canada (2000-2013). Chris and
Nikki have two children, Brett age 4 and Siena 3-months.
Now lets take the opportunity to meet our legend of the pitch….Nikki Knutson…. up close !
What are some of your most memorable moments from your high school career?
Winning 4 state championships was certainly memorable and every season was different. We
were the favorite and expected to win during certain seasons, and were the underdog for a
couple of seasons. I had friends and teammates on every one of those teams and great
coaches and mentors through all the sports I played. Each one taught me something different.
What are the most memorable moments from your collegiate, ODPand professional
experiences? Being recruited by Coach Allman to play in my hometown at the D1 level was the
start. She brought me together with so many of my teammates from other states from the ODP
program. Bringing us together was brilliant. We had a strong core but were always the
underdog because we were a new team. We were talented, scrappy, and played with a ton of
heart. We upset many teams over the years because of that. The camaraderie is the most
memorable and I am still friends with many of them.
On the Olympic Development side I was the first New Mexican to be named to the U-16
Olympic Team. My ODP coaches could not believe that I was from New Mexico because we
were not considered a powerhouse soccer state at that time. They pushed me harder
physically and mentally than I had ever been pushed. I grew up that summer. I was away from
home for 4 weeks and thrown in with a group of girls I did not know in a dorm environment in
Greeley, Colorado. I was a bit homesick but proud to be there.
Professionally, being offered a contract with Lazio was the highlight. I played as a guest for 6months and ultimately turned down a long-term contract, opting to return to Albuquerque to
enter law school. The people in Italy were friendly and the food fantastic. I fell in love with
Rome and my love for soccer only grew. The country absolutely loves soccer. We played in
the biggest stadium in Rome for one match and it was incredible. We traveled throughout Italy
playing soccer…that experience cannot be beat!
What is the best book and movie you have ever read/seen and why do you feel that way about
it? My favorite movie is “Stripes” with Bill Murrary. I love comedies and that movie never gets
old. It is so funny. I love to read mostly travel books and legal thrillers, but my “go to” book is
called “Tao Te Ching” by Stephen Mitchell. My brother gave it to me. It is a compilation of
poems and translations from Lao-tze. I pick it up often just to reflect, sometimes for strength
and sometimes just because. However, these days, you would probably catch me reading
“What to Expect During the Toddler Years” or “The Baby Book” !!
What have been your greatest moments in sports? There are a lot. I scored many winning
goals and can remember many of them like they happened yesterday. A goal I scored in the
state tournament against Albuquerque Academy was memorable and one against Air Force on
our home turf stands out. Above all beating nationally ranked Stanford and getting the assist
for the winning goal was sweet. We were the total underdog team and Stanford coach Ian
Sawyer had recruited me. He was also my ODP coach. Olympian Julie Foudy was still playing
for them….and here comes little UNM….a new program. We beat them 2-1 on their home field.
What accomplishments are you most proud of? My education; earning a Law Degree and a
double major while playing a collegiate sport. My greatest accomplishment is having two
happy, healthy, and lively kids along with the love of my life, to round out my beautiful family.
We have a strong unit. If I can continue that, my work is done.
How have sports impacted the successes you have achieved in other areas of your life? I have
always said that playing a sport in college while you are trying to succeed academically is like
having a full-time job. It takes a ton of dedication in both areas to excel. This trained me to
always have the dedication necessary for whatever job I undertake, whether it be winning a
battle in court, making the sale (my current job), or raising kids (my ultimate full time job).
Obviously when you take the sport to the professional level you are then going to a new
intensity within that realm. Sports teach you to push yourself. I push myself every day to be the
best at whatever job I am doing. My training in sports has built this into my core.
Your family played a big part in your education and athletics. Can you describe that influence?
I was the youngest of three and we were a tight unit. Mom was, and is, a teacher and dad was
Air Force. Education was the top priority in our home and sports was a part of that. My parents
were big supporters of all our athletics growing up. Being of Italian heritage food was the
center and my mom was always the team mom, chef, and cheerleader. As I can recall she
missed only one match during my entire high school, ODP and college career. That was an
ODP match in Salt Lake City and I broke my foot in the match…..that led to a medical red-shirt
season at UNM.
What advice would you give to high school coaches? Be tough on the field, court, whatever
venue your sport is on, but also have a sense of humor. Chill out and have fun with your
players off the field. I remember all my coaches being that way. Team dinners; before practice
and after we were always having fun. When it was time to work my coaches pushed us hard.
Coach Allman always stressed “leaving it all on the field.” It was a good balance. My high
school coach Greg Rusk (current Cleveland coach) was a huge influence on me in that way.
He insisted on a hard work effort on the field and allowed us to be ourselves off the field. My
life motto became “be fully present on the task at hand.” Whether you are competing, working,
or having fun give it everything you have at that moment. That attitude led to great
camaraderie with my teammates and coaches and lots of success on and off the field.
What advice would you give to today’s student-athlete? If you want it, go after it. If you don’t
have the desire it is no biggie. Find your level. Everyone doesn’t have to play at the collegiate
level or beyond. Know your limits. However whatever level you are at give it your all, otherwise
you sell yourself and your team short.
Everyone I have spoken to about you as a person and athlete has shared with me stories of
what a fun person you are to be around and how your personality influenced their success. I
was blessed with parents and coaches who always supported me. My dad and mom were
such positive people. When my dad passed away unexpectedly in 1997 it reinforced the
philosophy that life is short….it should be enjoyed and embraced. That has been the
philosophy that grew out of my experiences. During high school and college I was somewhat
of a practical joker. My college roommate and I were always being silly and always involving
others in our fun. It served to build great team spirit and unified us as individuals. When it
came time to be serious at practice we were able to do so, because we had a common
purpose, which was the success of each other and the team. I bring that same attitude to my
place of work.
As an athlete you differentiate between a “winner” and a “champion”. Can you explain that
distinction? A winner merely wins because they were better on a certain day. A champion
prepares constantly to win and sets a goal to do so. A champion has the focus and drive of
complete dedication, through every facet of preparedness and competition.
If you could do it all over again is there anything that you would do differently? Not a thing. I
don’t live with regret. I have so many great memories and am the consummate optimist.
People always ask me why I didn’t go away and play for Stanford, San Diego or Virginia (a few
teams I was recruited by). I was so proud to play for my home state. It was an honor to do so.
While I was in high school, UNM did not have a soccer program so I had always anticipated
leaving New Mexico. When that became available and Coach Allman approached me about
playing, I felt a sense of honor and responsibility to represent my state. I felt that way then and
do so now.
Will you and your husband encourage your children to participate in sports? How will you
choose what they will be involved in? We will let them lead the way and tell us their interests.
We will certainly expose them to many sports. We would be remiss if we didn’t, given our love
for and talents in sports. Genetically and environmentally they are likely to love sports also,
and be predisposed to do well. If they don’t that is fine. My husband and I were so intense with
our sports. If it happens that they fall in the same path then great. Whatever their goals and
aspirations are I hope they attack them with the same vigor and relentless pursuit that we did.
Nikki’s former coaches and teammates all paint the consistent picture of her as a person who
is a “champion” in soccer and in life. Here are a few of their reflections on their former player
and teammate.
Amy Allman Griffin (UNM soccer coach 1993-95; assistant soccer coach at the University of
Washington 1998-present). When I started the UNM program the pool of collegiate level
players in New Mexico was v low. To succeed I knew that I had to get the top player in the
state to commit. Nikki was that person…. a quality player and person from an outstanding
family. From the outset Nikki demonstrated great leadership and passion; she had an “all in”
mentality. From Nikki’s perspective her attitude was “wow I get to play soccer for my state
team.” That attitude was infectious for our program and our recruitment. We were able to put
together a combination of out-of-state players with national experience and a group of
outstanding New Mexico athletes. The team chemistry was amazing and Nikki drove the team
and their camaraderie. We were able to have immediate success as a result, winning the WAC
Championship in only her second year. Off the pitch Nikki was quite a personality. We used to
challenge each other on any subject possible. For example, on one away trip to Colorado we
rented vans for the trip and challenged each other to see who could return their van with as
little gas as possible. Nikki’s van ended up running out of gas on the off-ramp at the UNM exit,
and half the team was seen pushing the van to the drop-off spot to win the challenge.
Amy “Scooter” Garelick (UNM roommate and teammate). Nikki and I were in each other’s
weddings and she is my child’s godmother. As a teammate she was a 2-year captain and an
amazing leader. Coming to practice with her was such a joy because she created a great
environment. Nikki was the center of the hard work and of the fun. Her dynamic leadership,
hard work and love of the game created a winning environment. We knew each other through
ODP, and when coach Allman told me that Nikki had committed it was an easy decision for
me. The UNM program is now 20 years old and we created a legacy of success in those early
years. As roommates we loved to cut up. Nikki was the ringleader in the team decision to TP
coach Allman’s house. It was way over in Rio Rancho and it was quite a trek for us. We were
trying to be quiet and sneaky but we woke her up and she chased us all down the street. Our
college experience made us what we are today.
John DeWitt (UNM Head Coach 1996-97; currently bio-mechanist for NASA in Houston and
fitness advisor to numerous pro teams). Nikki is a first class person with a first class family.
She was a model athlete—a hard worker and team leader. She chose to stay and play for her
home school, an unproven program, when she could have had her pick of schools. Nikki
overcame injuries and the loss of her father during her college career. She came back stronger
than ever from both setbacks. When I think of Nikki I think of her perpetual smile. She always
had a way of turning a potential negative situation into a positive. After her graduation she was
a natural to move into a coach role and I had the pleasure of having Nikki on my staff for a
season before she left for pro soccer in Italy.
Dani Gilbert (Collegiate teammate). We met through ODP when we were both 16. Nikki is a
great friend, someone you can always rely on. I have fond memories of Nikki and her family.
Her mom was the “team mom” and was always there for us with a great meal or a well-timed
hug. She took in all the out-of-staters and made them feel like they were at home. Nikki and I
were in each other’s weddings and she is my confirmation sponsor. As for those notorious
team pranks Coach Allman promoted them as a team bonding thing. I can remember taking
these huge bags of fall leaves and depositing them inside coach’s screen door.
Nicole “Nikki” Knutson, La Cueva Bear 4-time state champion and All-American, UNM
women’s soccer pioneer, successful attorney and businessperson, wife and mother, and
champion in all ways !! A true NMAA “Legend of the Pitch”.