La Plata High School is home to many hard-working and dedicated athletes, most of whom manage two or more sports as well as work and school. With a minimum GPA of 2.0 set by the Southern Maryland Athletic Conference, playing more than one sport can be very challenging, as just one can dominate most of an evening and interfere with other studies. So how do students do it?
Athletes such as sophomore Austin Smith play different sports as the season changes; he wrestles in the winter and plays lacrosse in the spring. Austin is dedicated to both teams, but lacrosse is the sport he really takes to heart. He is already receiving college attention after playing on varsity lacrosse his freshman year.
“I put a lot of effort into both sports, with training all year-round,” Smith says. He plays in a summer lacrosse league and lifts weights off-season, and during the school year he attends games and practices while maintaining a solid GPA.
Unlike most students, however, he does not work. “I’m a young kid without a job, but I’ll have to learn to keep up with a lot when I finally get one,” Smith says.
Senior Brent Corrine also plays two sports. He does football in the fall and wrestles in the winter, and also volunteers at the Newburg Fire Department.
Corrine believes in putting priorities over wants. “Sometimes I have the urge to hang out with friends late, but then I do not because I will have practice or a game the next morning.”
Though it may conflict with his social life, Corrine still enjoys playing two sports. “I take pride in being a part of two sports at La Plata, and I have learned to balance my time between everything in my life,” Corrine says. “I give everything I have to be a part of the La Plata athletic squad and I intend on keeping it that way.”
La Plata athletes take pride in their success, their teams and, most importantly, their school.
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