Images provided by Varsity Views
There are 50 plus sports established in the United States. How can an athlete choose just one? Sophomore Zac Tuinei decided to choose two.

    Zac started playing baseball when he was three years old. At six years old he was introduced to football. Today he plays both baseball and football for NHS and is also on a club baseball team with the Indiana Bulls. He is an athlete that has learned to embrace diversity through multiple sports.

    ”I’ve played these sports for so long that I’ve learned to love each game differently but equally,” Zac said.

    Zac gets a taste of diversity when transitioning from tackling players on the turf to running bases in the dirt.

  ”Playing multiple sports gives me the opportunity to compete more than others, along with going through different motions as an athlete,” Zac said.

  In football he is a free safety and defensive linebacker. In baseball he is considered a utility fielder, meaning that he can play almost any position. However, his primary position is center field.

    Jane Tuinei, Zac’s mother, has always been a supportive figure in Zac’s athletic career.

  ”Zac loves this life of both sports, and gets up and chooses it every single day,” Jane said.

  Being involved in two sports also means having many coaches and teammates. Zac gets the privilege to receive unique insight from all kinds of people.

  ”Zac is a fierce competitor on the field who works tirelessly in both football and baseball,” Indiana Bulls coach Greg Vogt said. “He has set high goals for himself and continues to work to achieve those.”

  Athletes who compete in one sport usually only have a couple months of season. This means that they tend to have lengthy breaks of rest time.

  “They [one sport athletes] can lose the feel of competition in long off-seasons,” Vogt said.

  NHS football coach Jason Simmons sees the value of playing several sports. He has also seen what Zac is capable of.

  “Being a high-level, multi-sport athlete has forced Zac to manage his time and balance his academics in a way that has allowed for growth and maturity,” Simmons said.

  Coach Vogt and coach Simmons aren’t the only ones that have kind words to say about Zac. Zac has had many teammates from being apart of both sports. One of those teammates being his good friend, sophomore Adam Bales.

  “I think playing multiple sports has made him more of a team player, making him more adaptable to different teams, players, and coaches,” Bales said.

  An athlete can gain many traits that stretch beyond the physical benefits.

  “He is constantly competing and being challenged by some of the best programs in the state,” Simmons said. This fosters mental toughness and personal growth.”

  Jane says that Zac is not sure which sport he wants to pursue in his future, but would love to do both if he could find a college that would allow it.

But according to Zac, playing two sports isn’t alway so glorious. These activities come attached with commitment, time, and sacrifice.

  “What you sacrifice and what you make time for is very hard,” Zac said. “At the end of the day, I can’t complain or regret anything because there’s nothing I’d rather do than play baseball and football.”