Cameryn Shultes

Middleburgh’s Cameryn Shultes doesn’t get caught up in the many honors she has earned. She’d rather talk about the little moments, such as all the practices and time spent with her teammates. And she’s glad she got to do it in a town that cares as much about its kids as Middleburgh.

The three-sport athlete is, in the words of Middleburgh athletic director Gregg Johns, “loyal, reliable and hard-working.” She has excelled in the classroom, in athletics and perhaps most noticeably, in community service. Shultes has done most of her service with St. Peter’s Hospital.

“I participated in a program through school this year with St. Peter’s [New Visions Health Careers], where instead of just straight education, everything is tied into health services, so I got to follow the doctors on rounds, see different aspects of the healthcare industry, and it also ties in to giving back to the community,” said Shultes, who is one of 10 high school honorees for the third-annual Capital District Sports Women of the Year awards.

In addition, Shultes has volunteered at St. Peter’s Hospital making Christmas/holiday gift baskets for all the staff. She also volunteered at Becky’s House cleaning the house and yard. (Becky’s House is a house affiliated with St. Peter’s to provide housing for families with relatives or children in the hospital for extended periods of time.) She also will be volunteering at the St. Peter’s Cancer Care Center in the upcoming few weeks.

“She has the drive and desire to do her very best, while always finding time and willingness to help others succeed,” Johns said.

Athletically, Shultes has been bowling for the longest, since the 2016-17 season. She was a Section II first-team all-star from 2017-22, a Western Athletic Conference first-team all-star from 2017-22, the team’s most improved player in 2019, the WAC MVP in 2022 and had the league’s high average in 2022. According to her coach and father, Richard Shultes, she had a high series of 754 this past season, which was the highest for boys and girls in the WAC.

“Cameryn led the team to a fourth consecutive sectional win,” Richard said, “and a second trip to small-school states, where they placed second statewide. Cameryn and the [Middleburgh] team has not lost a match in the WAC for the last four years.”
In soccer, as a goalie, she was the team co-defensive MVP in 2020, won the Coach’s Choice Award in 2021, was a Section II first-team all-star in 2020 and 2022 and was the WAC Mohawk Division Defensive MVP in 2022.

In softball, in which she is the catcher, she won the Coach’s Choice Award in 2021.

Academically, Cameryn Shultes was a NYSPHSAA Scholar-Athlete in bowling from 2016-22, in soccer from 2018-22 and in softball in 2019, 2021 and 2022. She is the salutatorian and will attend SUNY Geneseo, where she plans to major in biology on the pre-med track.

Looking back, Shultes said she had to learn how to develop as a leader.

“I always wanted to be a leader, but obviously when you’re young, you’re not built for that yet,” she said. “I certainly think as I got older, I did learn to become a leader for the younger girls, especially in soccer. Your goalies aren’t usually going to be your captains because they’re not involved in every bit of the up-and-down that other players are, but I learned how my voice could be heard as a goalie and a leader for others. I worked very hard.”

When discussing athletic memories, Shultes doesn’t mention the headlines, but rather the day-to-day moments. Those are what sports are all about for her.
“Just the excitement of playing, the release of being able to play and to put all your energy into something,” she said. “Plus, one thing about sports is all the emotions that come out of them. Another thing I enjoy is the team aspect. I’ve made lifelong friends through them. And just the excitement of doing something all the way through.”

Give her hours of practice and time spent with friends any day of the week. And by all means, let it be in Middleburgh.

“Thankfully our school is very community-oriented because it’s not very big, and being able to compete in front of a lot of the community members and having it be a big deal in our town is nice,” Shultes said. “Not all schools can be that way because they’re so big.”

“She is the epitome of what, as a coach, we look for in a student-athlete,” Johns said. “She is well-rounded in academics, athletics and school activities. Cameryn is a great teammate, a great leader and just a solid and respectful young woman.”