MENOMONIE - For UW-Stout's Jenna Schlueter, playing a full, competitive game of soccer barely gets her to break a sweat.

After all, the Blue Devils freshman midfielder spends much of her time away from the soccer field doing something a bit more daunting than stoning opposing ball-handlers.

That is, of course, if you consider climbing the highest mountain peaks in Colorado much of a task.

"I started rock climbing during my sophomore year in high school with a girl from my club soccer team," the 19-year-old Schlueter said.

And that was just the beginning for the girl who was born and raised in Littleton, Colo., just outside of Denver.

By the time her senior year at Littleton High School began, Schlueter already had climbed her first 14,000-foot mountain peak - known as "14ers" to those who have taken one on.

In all, Schlueter, who missed last season with a knee injury and is a sophomore by school standards, has climbed six of the 58 14,000-foot mountains listed on www.14ers.com.

And she has no plans of stopping anytime soon.

"My mom started climbing 14ers a year before I did and she really got me into it," said Schlueter, who normally climbs with her parents, Yvonne and Kirk, and two older brothers, Brett and Garrett. "I don't think there's anything I can really compare it to. It's really unique.

"When you're on top of a 14er, the view is amazing and I don't think it really hits you until you get to the bottom and you complete it. You feel like you completed something really big."

Schlueter isn't the only one in the UW-Stout women's soccer program that knows a thing or two about climbing mountains, either.

Coach Meagan Frank, also a native of Colorado, has completed four 14ers, including the well-known Pike's Peak. Frank says it's a bit of a surprise when people here ask to hear stories about her climbing trips.

"I do think it's cool," said Frank, who is in her fourth season as the head of the program. "But it's just not the same excitement in Colorado because it seems like everyone does it."

These days Frank has begun taking her three children back to Colorado every summer for five to six weeks to introduce them to a hobby unknown to many in the Midwest.

And that includes the majority of the UW-Stout roster.

"I wish (Jenna) would take me back to Colorado with her," freshman Krista Van Aartsen said with a laugh.

Van Aartsen roomed with Schlueter in the preseason and says even she doesn't hear too many of her teammate's tales from the mountains.

"It's crazy, pretty much everybody around here is from Minnesota and Wisconsin but when I roomed with her we just clicked," Van Aartsen said. "She and coach Frank are both real humble about it though. It's really cool."

Schlueter, who loves taking a camera on all of her hiking trips and says that photography has become one of her favorite hobbies, has never had any serious injuries resulting from her perilous hobby - though she does have a few stories stemming from dehydration and minor tumbles.

She also says that her mom and older brother are in the process of planning a trip to climb Mount Evans, another 14er, the next time she makes it home.

So which hobby does Schlueter hold in higher regard: mountain climbing or soccer?

According to her, plans to climb Mount Evans will have to be put on hold until the Blue Devils soccer team has a long break in its schedule.

"I love rock climbing, but there's a lot of equipment you need and it takes a lot of time to get everything ready, whereas soccer I feel like you can just get a bunch of people together on a random day and just play," Schlueter said. "I have a lot more passion for soccer than I do for rock climbing."

And as long as she's competing on the soccer field - Schlueter has played in all 13 matches this season for UW-Stout - she'll be keeping busy until her next expedition rolls around.

"I feel like I can just drop (rock climbing) and pick it up again when I go home, as long as I'm staying in shape while I'm here," she said.