Hall of Honor
Information as of 2013: Four-time All-American and two-time RMAC player of the year, Cheryl Bates-Olson started every game and served as team captain throughout her soccer career at Colorado Mesa University. Bates-Olson came to CMU in 1997 from Thornton, Colo., where she played soccer for Horizon High School and the Broomfield Blast Soccer Club.
Jim Buchan, the first head coach of CMU women's soccer program, said, "Cheryl Bates is the best soccer player to ever wear a Mesa shirt." While Bates-Olson was on the team, the Maverick women's soccer team ranked in the top 10 in the nation. A defender, she never missed a game while earning her degree in mathematics. She was a member of the Math Club, mentored students at local schools and helped with soccer clinics for young children in the community – all while wholeheartedly supporting her team.
Bates-Olson was a leader on and off the field who understood the importance of being part of a team. Her teammates followed her because she was a natural leader. After Mesa, she went on to earn her master's degree in mathematics and then returned to her hometown to teach and coach women's soccer at Horizon High School.
Bates-Olson is now married and has two children of her own. She still plays on a co-ed soccer team and coaches her daughters' soccer squads. She returned to CMU in 2007 for an alumni game and to reconnect with her soccer family. She says the sport will always be a fundamental element in her life.
