Sara Stadem | Editor
A few weeks ago, we took a look into the life of two female high school student athletes and how they juggle it all, between school and sports or jobs and planning for their future, how they make it work on a day-to-day basis.
Today we take a look at two male high school student athletes and what they do to ensure they are succeeding on and off the basketball court or wrestling mat all while maintaining good grades and preparing for what comes after high school graduation. Owen Heath, a junior at West Central, and Zach Powell, a senior at Tri-Valley, take us through how they navigate it all.
Outside of everyday school studies, Heath is very active in extracurricular activities during the school year. He competes in football, basketball, baseball and track, all which he has done for many years. Heath has been participating in basketball and baseball since the first grade, football since third grade and track since seventh grade.
During football, Heath explained he would spend around two hours after his school day with practice, which equals approximately 10-11 hours a week for football, including games on Friday nights.
Heath continued to explain that in between his seasons of football and basketball, it allowed him more time to go to the gym and get ready for his basketball season which is now underway.
According to Heath, basketball season takes up just as much time as football, if not more time. “Sports take up the majority of my life as I spend most of my days doing them,” Heath said.
Heath considers himself lucky with the sports that he competes in as the sports do not require him to leave early for his events, other than during track. “With all of the schools that we play against being less than an hour away, it makes it easy to travel there without missing much school,” Heath explained.
In order to juggle it all, Heath takes a “go with the flow” routine, he explained, starting his day off by going to school and focusing on doing his best in every class. From there, once it’s getting closer to the end of his school day, Heath shifts gears and starts to think about what sport he is in and thinking about what he can do to be the best he can be in that activity. When it comes to homework, Heath explained he is generally able to get his work done in class and if he doesn’t, he spends around an hour a day at home to finish it.
Despite his schedule, Heath prioritizes family and friends as well. Heath said, “Although my days are very long and get tiring, I always find time to spend with my family and friends, even if it is the littlest thing like playing a game or eating as a family.
Heath continues his busy schedule during his summer months, playing basketball for Sacred Hoops along with playing baseball. With both of those, Heath travels all around South Dakota competing in tournaments.
If this wasn’t enough for a busy schedule, Heath also works part time at the Pizza Ranch in Hartford, working Sunday mornings as it fits into his schedule since there are no sports for Heath going on that day.
Coach Jacob Sittig, Heath’s basketball coach, had his first experience with Heath in middle school basketball and the summer Gym Rats program. Currently, Heath and Coach Sittig are in their third season together as coach and player for the West Central Trojans basketball team.
Outside of coaching, Coach Sittig also had Heath in Geometry class during Heath’s freshman year. Coach Sittig explained, “Heath always makes sure his priorities are straight. He makes sure to pay attention to the lesson and use his class time wisely to work on the assignments because he knows he will be busy after school with practices or games.” He continued, “If he has any extra work or studying to do, I assume he uses his time wisely at home as well because everything is always done and done well. He does not let his activities be an excuse for not performing well in class.”
As for Heath’s work ethic on and off the court, Coach Sittig explained both on and off the court shows in the student and athlete he has become. “His grades have always been good, but to maintain those grades and never let up as his activities load has increases is very impressive. He also has turned into a very fine football and basketball player showing he has placed an importance on improving his body and skill,” Coach Sittig said. He concluded, “At times he is stretched so thin and I am not sure how he keeps up with everything and keeps going but he simply always does. We have a lot of great student athletes at West Central. Perhaps even some who are better as school or a sport but when you look at the product as a whole, there are few who reach the level in both that Owen has achieved.”
Heath concluded, “I would like to say to the underclassman that it is important to focus on school first. If you don’t succeed in school, you can’t participate in any sports.”
Powell stays busy during his school year at Tri-Valley with football, wrestling, track and baseball along with participating in school plays. As for sports, Powell explained, “I’ve been in them for my whole high school career. Football and baseball have been a part of my life since I can remember.”
Most of Powell’s sports take up approximately 10-14 hours each week which consists of practices, lifting and games and/or meets. Generally, practices take place after school for Powell with the exception of some sports lifting in the morning.
According to Powell, with the activities that he participates in, it doesn’t happen very often that he misses school to compete. “Usually, we leave right after school ends or during our last period,” Powell said. “I get lots of time in class to do work as I don’t miss much homework.” Powell explained since he does get time in class to work on school work, he is usually able to get his homework done at school. In the cases that he is not able to get it finished in school, Powell spends approximately two hours a night to get caught up.
When it comes to his schedule and making sure it all gets completed, Powell explained, “I usually just go with the flow.” He continued, “I try to adjust with everything going on. I can’t really have a routine with so much stuff happening in one day.”
During his summer, Powell continues his busy schedule with baseball and lifting. Powell also finds time to maintain a job in between his activities and studies. “I try to have one year-round and during school it’s usually after practice and weekends. During the summer, it’s about every week day,” Powell said.
Coach Dan Snethen, Powell’s football coach, explained he has coached Powell in some compacity since Powell was in third grade. In addition to coaching, Coach Snethen has had the opportunity to have Powell in his classroom for American History last year, his academic advisory group and this spring it will be for American Government.
“Zach is a very conscientious student and keeps his schoolwork caught up. It’s probably most difficult for him during wrestling season, with all the long hours of training and the weekend tournaments,” Coach Snethen said. He concluded, “For as busy and involved as he is, Zach does a wonderful job balancing sports (football, wrestling and track), student organizations and school work.”
Coach Dereik Fossum is heading into his fourth year of coaching Powell in track and field. Although Coach Fossum has not had Powell in the classroom, he explains Powell works hard at what he does for Coach Fossum. “Zach is a really hard-working kid who will do whatever you ask of him. I could never question his effort,” Coach Fossum said. “When it came time to find people to run on the 4x800m relay, he seized the opportunity and had a really great showing in an event that was longer than he was used to. Effort and a willingness to trust coaches and try new things are invaluable and impossible to quantify.”
As for the advice to the underclassman, Powell said, “Don’t get too caught up with everything happening.” He concluded, “It may seem like a lot is going on but if you keep your head straight, it will all be okay.”