SUMNER, Wash. — Over the past decade the Sumner Spartans have consistently been a state contender in many sports including football and baseball.
And a Spartan senior All-League athlete is showcasing rhythm and harmony.
At Sumner High School, the football team takes pride in big crowds. Big hits and big plays. Jay Mentink led the Spartans with eight interceptions as a junior and became one of the top safeties in the state.
"I've always been fast and just a good athlete all around, so playing safety kind of came natural to me," Jay said.
Jay's first love though was baseball.
"I have a new perspective about baseball, it really applies to life: you have failure, you have to overcome obstacles, it's a mental game. Baseball really applies to life, you can learn a lot of life lessons," Jay said.
Growing up, Jay was primarily a short-stop, but made the move to center field as a freshman.
"For me, center fielder always kind of felt natural, because playing safety too, so you just kind of play center field on the football field, turn and go, go get the ball," Jay said.
He's a first team All-League outfielder and safety, with a 3.99 GPA. Jay was getting looks from Pac-12 schools, but when the Ivy League came calling, Jay answered - deciding to play both sports for Princeton.
"I'm invested a lot in the school side of things, it was kind of an easy decision for me," Jay said.
When he's not hitting the fences, Jay enjoys hitting the high notes.
"Since first grade through eighth grade I've been in ten productions, been doing it since I was little, and I love it," Jay said.
Jay has not only performed in musicals, he's also a two-time regional solo ensemble champion.
"I'm glad that I won, but I just love music and singing," Jay said.
This year, Jay will sing an Italian song at the state championships. And when he's not singing in Italian, he brings it back home. He sang the national anthem last year on senior day and led off with a double and sang the national anthem at T-Mobile Park earlier this year.
"T-Mobile was cool, it was insane, I was standing there like wow, it's an amazing experience. You got to find what you love, find what you are passionate about and then you just have to commit yourself to it every day, staying disciplined," Jay said.
Besides playing baseball and football, Jay is also the Sumner High ASB vice-president.