TATE GETTING RARE BREAK FROM COMPETITION

Joleigh Tate has a few days off from competition this week. While that might not be a big deal for most high school athletes, it is for Tate.

That’s because Tate plays six sports during the school year and is involved with a seventh.

For the one she doesn’t actually play, Tate is also among the trainer staff for the football team.

Here was here schedule one week: Tuesday at Elkins for volleyball, Wednesday at Glenwood for state golf tournament, Thursday at Jessieville for district tennis tournament, and at home for volleyball, and Friday at Timpson, Texas for football.

“There’s a lot of travel,” she admits.

There is, obviously, also a lot of overlap, especially in the fall.

“I just go from one to the other, I don’t really get days off,” Tate said. “One sport to the other.”

A senior at Booneville High School, Tate played her last first basketball game on Monday at Bearcat Gym. Oddly, she is now competition free until November 18 when the Lady Bearcats travel to Havana to play Western Yell County.

“It feels kind of good right now. I’m getting a little break,” said Tate.

As is typical, rarely coming off the floor Monday, Tate had four points, five rebounds, and a steal in the basketball season opener, a 57-51 win over Mansfield.

But Tate being in on the action, like not having a game for more than a day or two at a time, is nothing unusual.

Actually, it’s not unusual for her to pull off multiple competitions in a day, as was the case when she played golf, tennis, and volleyball in a single day as a junior.

There are benefits, aside from feeding a competitive drive.

“Golf you walk the whole time, and tennis is back and forth, and volleyball you jump and dive all over the floor,” said Tate of a near daily full body workout. “You don’t have to worry about off-season.”

Tate also isn’t just filling a uniform. She is a major contributor to the success of every team in which she occupies a roster spot.

Regularly contributing to the scoring total, golf wrapped up with Tate accompanying her teammates and head coach Jake Fennell to the state tournament.

In tennis, for head coach Kaelyn Holub Tate and doubles partner Layla Byrum reached the state tournament.

WIth Bailey Stringer in volleyball Tate was All Conference, Honorable Mention All State, and selected as the best offensive player by her teammates.

A blocking/hitting specialist Tate, who almost never left the floor, and the Lady Cats ended a state tournament appearance drought and played a state tournament volleyball match on a Tuesday.

“We got the day off Wednesday and we went (to basketball) Thursday, Friday,” said Tate. “I got one day off.”

For the basketball team Tate, “plays wherever (head coach Tim Goers) needs me.”

After basketball wraps up Tate will fill roles on both the softball and track teams.

For Ronnie Denton in softball, Tate is a power hitting catcher who sees few base stealing attempts and in track for Darby Ulmer she does mostly field events including throwing shot and disc, the triple and high jump.

Ironically the field events start a meet but Tate also runs a leg of the 4x400-meter relay, which is the last event of a meet, so there is no early departure.

Tate was All Conference in softball last year and was fifth in the shot put at the state track meet.

There is actually a seventh sport Tate considered: shooting sports and she has watched a sibling take aim at clay targets.

But in the end, “there was nowhere to put it,” said Tate.

A favorite?

“I honestly like them all equally, but when it comes basketball season, it gets the most,” said Tate.

Of course there are no sports/coaches sharing her efforts with other sports/coaches at that point either.

She does all of this while maintaining superior grades. As a senior her class load is light, at least in terms of the number of requirements, but includes the challenges of pre-AP chemistry along with concurrent credit colleges courses college algebra and speech/composition I.

She is as used to success in the classroom as she is on a course, court, diamond, or throwing pit.

“Last year I had all As and kept a 4-point GPA,” said Tate.

Sports has never ended for Tate with the close of a school year either. She plays both travel softball and travel basketball during the summer.

“No breaks for me. It keeps me busy,” said Tate.

As hard as it might be to believe now, Tate wasn’t really sure about sports as a youngster.

“At first I didn’t want to do anything, and then I wanted to play like basketball and softball,” said Tate. “Then it was like eighth and ninth grade years I started adding more and more sports.”

As a senior Tate is aware the end of the road is coming for some sports, at least competitively, but she does have aspirations of carrying one into a collegiate setting.

“I’m going to (Arkansas) Tech and I’m going to possibly try to play softball there,” said Tate.

Tate is the daughter of Mandy Williams and Brandon Tate.