Triple threats

Silverado student-athletes share the soccer field, basketball court and baseball diamond

SE/HE/AN/VIEW--Silverado left fielder Ryan Whitesitt throws the ball into the infield against Basic on April 28. Whitesitt and pitcher Brenton Van have been teammates on the Skyhawks successful soccer, basketball and baseball teams.--View photo Henry Vargas. SE/HE/AN/VIEW--Silverado's Ryan Whitesitt (third from left) and Brenton Van (No. 22) talk with teammates during the Skyhawks 16-12 win at Basic on April 28. 2005. The two juniors have been playing sports together since they have been in Little League.-- View photo Henry Vargas.

Playing three different high school sports is a difficult thing. To excel at all three of those sports is a completely different matter.

At Silverado High School, the Skyhawks don't have just one three-sport star but two -- the dynamic duo of juniors Ryan Whitesitt and Brenton Van, who both star on the school's soccer, basketball and baseball teams.

The last year has been a memorable one for Whitesitt and Van, who helped Silverado to the baseball state semifinals, the school's first soccer state championship and a regional semifinal appearance in basketball.

Silverado baseball coach Brian Whitaker finds it refreshing to know that some kids still want to try to do it all.

"People have too much of a concept that kids specialize (in one sport)," Whitaker said. "It's nice to see kids playing two or three sports ... getting involved in their school and moving from season to season."

For Whitesitt and Van, playing all three sports simply seems like a natural progression. The two have been playing sports together since Little League.

"We are pretty good friends," Whitesitt said. "We grew up together and we've played all three sports since we were like 9 or 10."

On the soccer field, it would be hard to find a goaltender as talented as Whitesitt, who has played on the varsity squad all three years. Last season he helped the Skyhawks to a 20-1-2 record and the school's first state championship as he shut out Centennial, 3-0, in the title game. The team jumped out to a mind-boggling start by outscoring its opponents 42-0 in its first seven games, thanks in great part to Whitesitt.

Silverado soccer coach John Cwik lauded the play of Whitesitt, starting for his first season between the pipes, in an earlier interview.

"Throughout the year, he did more than I expected," Cwik said. "I told him in the beginning, 'You may let in a couple of soft goals here and there, but you can't get frustrated.' But it seemed like he just didn't do it. He didn't let in any soft goals. He did a lot of good things back there this year."

Whitesitt was named the first-team, All-Southeast Division and first-team, All-Sunrise Region goaltender. Helping his buddy out defensively through their championship season was stopper Van, who also scored eight goals for the Skyhawks.

When the fall sports season ended and the winter season began, Whitesitt and Van traded in their soccer cleats for basketball sneakers.

They both played guard for coach Rob Pisano. Whitesitt started and averaged around eight points per game while Van was the first man off the bench and averaged about six points per game.

The Skyhawks went 17-9 in the regular season and defeated Eldorado in the first round of the Sunrise playoffs before being eliminated by Valley in the next game.

When the basketball season ended, it was time for Whitesitt and Van to don another pair of cleats for baseball. After making it all the way to the state semifinals as sophomores, the two juniors have helped Silverado to an 18-9 start and prime positioning to make another run at another state title.

Whitesitt, who starts in left field and bats around .300, admitted it was fairly hard to play three sports.

"It's actually very hard (physically)," he said. "There's really not much time to prepare for the next upcoming sport."

Van thinks the cardiovascular work he gets running up and down the soccer field helps prepare him for basketball and baseball.

"It's pretty tough but once you get through the soccer season you're pretty much in shape for the rest of the year," Van said. "After soccer, you get your endurance up and then it's just a matter of staying in shape for the rest of the year."

Whitesitt said playing three sports is something he has always done.

"I've played all three sports ever since I was four years old and I thought I'd come out for all three and try out for the team and I just went from there," he said. "It's actually pretty tough, too because I'm in all honors classes right now and it's tough doing all three sports and trying to manage my schoolwork at the same time."

But both he and Van seem to manage just fine in the classroom. Whitesitt sports a 3.8 grade point average and Van a 3.5.

Although they are still juniors and will be doing this all over again next year, the two athletes have different ideas on what sport they would like to pursue in college.

"I don't know yet," Whitesitt said. "I've never been able to decide which sport I like better or which sport I think I'm better at."

Van would like to follow in the footsteps of his older brother Robbie, who starred as a pitcher for both Silverado and UNLV and who led the Skyhawks to their only state baseball title in 2000.

"I want to go to college for baseball," Van said. "I think that's where I'll have the most opportunity. My brother was drafted out of high school and then went to UNLV on a full-ride and then after that he got drafted in the eighth round (of Major League Baseball's amateur draft)."

Van has helped his team and his own cause from the pitcher's mound this season, posting a 6-1 record with a 1.70 earned run average.

One thing both Whitesitt and Van agree on is that the Skyhawks are very capable of winning a baseball title this spring.

"I definitely think we have a great shot at winning this year," Whitesitt said. "I know we have a lot of confidence as a team and have a great shot at going far in the playoffs and taking it (state title) this year."

"When it comes down to playoff time, a lot of teams in our league only have one dominant pitcher," Van said. "As soon as Chad (Robinson) comes back (from injury) this year, we'll have a deep pitching staff and that should be able to get us through. Our starting rotation would be me, Kevin Rath and Chad. Chad was a big factor for us last year in the playoffs as a sophomore."

If Robinson -- who along with sophomore Rath also played on Silverado's basketball team -- does get his arm right in time for the playoffs, expect Silverado to again make some noise in the regional playoffs this week and the state tournament next week.