This year at Grayslake North there are four, 12 season athletes: Jack Larson, Camden Ellingsen, Nick Fish, and Sarina Low.

“A 12 season athlete means that you have been in a sport every season all four years of high school. You receive an award at our senior banquet. It’s a 12 season athlete plaque. I would say it’s one of our most prestigious awards. It shows that you were dedicated, that you participated in athletics more days than you were ever even in our school. Because fall sports start before school starts and spring sports end after school ends, you have spent more days in the school as a Knight athlete than as a Knight student,” said athletic director Tina Wollard. 

Along with the plaques, 12 season athletes get a three-season athlete patch each year that they have been an athlete at North. Twelve season athletes also get their names on a school plaque.  

“I honestly feel like it’s a great achievement, one of my most rewarding achievements being that you’re taking the time every day no breaks just going from one sport to another, practice, games, doubleheaders. It’s a lot to manage like keeping up with grades,” said senior Jack Larson.  “It’s a big accomplishment. I mean it’s hard to see it and be like oh yeah this kid might not play that much though, but he’s taking the time out of his day. It takes a lot of time out of your day.”

Being a 12 season athlete comes with its benefits of having places to go, people to meet along the way and gain the love of the game.

“I love the game of sports. I’m a huge sports person. I mean any sport you can name, I love it, and I love playing it. I always want to try new things, and being a part of a sports team is like hanging out with your friends, meeting new people, going out all the time not just being stuck at home doing nothing.
It always gets me out doing something,” Larson said.

This year North has the first ever thirteen season athlete, Nick Fish. Fish added golf to his schedule this year.

“I honestly didn’t know I was the first 13 season athlete. It feels awesome to know I am the first 13 sport athlete in school history. My siblings had a lot of accomplishments in sports at this school that I unfortunately was not able to accomplish, so I’m glad I have one that they do not,” Fish said.

“Being an athlete at this school has allowed me to make so many new friends. I came from a small private school out of eighth grade, so I was able to meet many new people. There is nothing like representing your school and wearing that black and gold. I have a lot of pride in being a Knight,” Fish said.

“I’m super happy to be a 12 season athlete and so proud of myself for achieving it and reaching my goals. I did set out to be a 12 season athlete, and it had been a goal of mine since I was in middle school,” said senior Sarina Low.

“It’s just an easy way to get out, stay active and stay healthy. You’re having fun with your friends anyways, so you might as well just do a sport to stay healthy,” said senior Camden Ellingsen.

“It definitely was a lot of hard work to be a 12 season athlete. Working out every single day does take a toll on your body and calls for lots of care. Another difficult thing was staying on top of all school work throughout high school while constantly in a sport and working, but was 100% worth it,” Low said.

“I mean there’s some times when at practice you’re like why am I doing this, but most of the time it’s just like I’m doing a sport and then next season I’m doing another sport and then another sport,” Ellingsen said.

“We have a senior banquet every year for our senior athletes. Each athlete receives a plaque with all of their sports on it, and then we give specialty awards. We give athlete of the year, male and female. We give sportsmanship award winners, male and female. We give academic awards for scholar athletes of the year. We give a service award, maybe a manager or someone else who has given service to the school, and all of these awards are nominated and voted on by the head coaches in the programs. And then we give twelve season athletes their awards, so we speak about them and that’s what they earn,” Woolard said.

This year the senior banquet for all student athletes will most likely be held outside at the stadium football field so athletes and parents can all be in attendance.