Any athlete knows that a sport can be very time consuming and take commitment. But imagine dedicating that time and commitment every season of the year for multiple years in a row. This is the case for Yutan’s 12-sport athletes, seniors Maura Tichota, Haley Kube, Jesse Kult, Braxton Wentworth, Joey Benjamin and Derek Wacker.

This accomplishment did not come without challenges. Tichota—who has been a part of volleyball, basketball and track—has had the challenge of balancing her personal life with being in multiple sports.

“A challenge is balancing homework with activities and practices as well as social life, but once you get that down, then it is good,” Tichota said.

Another challenge to being a 12-sport athlete is the lack of free time.

“It’s year round, you’re always working on some kind of sport and in between seasons, you only get probably about a week of off-time,” said Wacker, who has participated in football, wrestling and track.

One thing that can make these challenges easier to overcome is a dedicated mindset, which is what Kube, who participated in football, basketball and track, had.

“I remember my sixth grade year before I even went to Yutan and seeing all the names of the 12-sport athletes on that plaque, and I made up my mind then and there that I wanted to be a 12-sport athlete,” Kube said. 

While it can be difficult, being in multiple sports throughout the years definitely comes with benefits. Kult, who has participated in track, wrestling, football and golf, said sports allow him to stay in good shape and create friendships with his peers.

 “I feel like I’m healthy and I make friends throughout the sports,” Kult said.

Another benefit to being a 12-sport athlete is that it can shape student-athletes as a person. For Wentworth, who has been a part of football, basketball and baseball, it has been an addition to his personality. 

“It’s allowed me to just be more confident in myself as a person, as well as learn to compete and be the best competitor,” Wentworth said. 

The experience also gave the student-athletes skills to use beyond their sports.

“It gave me a good work ethic that I can use in my future,” Kult said.

Since there are benefits, Benjamin would recommend being in multiple sports because of his own experiences in football, basketball and track.

“You should always be involved in after-school activities, and being a 12-sport athlete just means that I participate in everything  possible and have as much fun as possible,” Benjamin said.

Wacker would also recommend it to other students. 

“It lets you learn a lot of things from each individual sport that you might not get just from doing one sport and then benefits you as an athlete and overall health wise because you’re always doing something,” Wacker said.