 |
Ross PickleCook County Middle SchoolAdel, Georgia by Robert Preston, Jr. photography by Emrich Photography |
|
A workout regimen consisting of 5:30 a.m. weight sessions, running and dragging a tire by the light of a pair of car headlights sounds like the kind of program a veteran athlete uses as he or she prepares for competition at the next level. That’s kind of the case here, although the athlete in question is 13 year old Ross Pickle of Cook County Middle School. You could say Ross is a veteran – he’s been playing sports since he was six years old. And he plays year round in a variety of sports. “It feels like he’s been playing since birth,” jokes Julie Pickle, Ross’ mother. Like most youngsters, he started out playing tee ball. When he was seven, football came into the picture. Somewhere along the way, Ross picked up tennis, and he added wrestling to his athletic resume this school year. ₱ Ross loves competing. He doesn’t want to take any part of the year off from athletics. He doesn’t mind the work or the sacrifice it takes to excel. “I don’t get tired of practicing and playing,” he says. “All my friends do the same thing.” Pretty early in his career, his parents noticed he was going to be good. Julie says Ross always ended up playing with older kids. It didn’t matter the sport – Ross was always able to hold his own against players who should have been too much for him to handle. On the gridiron, Ross plays quarterback and free safety. Quarterback might be the glamour position, but he says he enjoys free safety more. He enjoys contact, and at free safety, he gets to hit people. “I can hit more people at free safety. I also like grabbing interceptions. I’ve had a few picks,” he says. Quarterback, on the other hand, is more difficult. In addition to executing the offense, the quarterback has to provide leadership in the huddle – sometimes rather vocally. That’s not always easy to do, and it’s a role Ross is growing into. He’s doing a good job of providing that kind of leadership. His most memorable football moment came three years ago in the Turkey Bowl in Tifton. Ross’ team was playing for the championship, and he was quarterback. He scored two touchdowns on the way to winning the title. It’s performances like the one from the Turkey Bowl that have his future football coaches salivating. However, he’s just as gifted on the baseball field. He plays middle infield, usually shortstop, and pitches. Ross would rather play short. “I like the action. You’ve got to always be ready and on the move,” he says. That’s not to say he doesn’t like pitching. Ross is a natural competitor and he revels in the one-on-one challenge of batter v. pitcher. It’s a cat and mouse game, one that he loves to win. “I love that challenge. It’s fun to see who is better,” admits Ross. He throws right-handed, but hits from both sides of the plate. Ross possesses the ability to hit the long ball on either side, though he hits more home runs right-handed. He says he makes better contact hitting left-handed. Ross remembers one home run in particular. Two years ago, he was playing in Fitzgerald on his recreation league All Star team. Ross was at the |
   Favorite:
|
plate with the bases loaded. He worked the count to 2-1 when the pitcher offered him a knuckleball. “It was a more of a floater,” he remembers. Ross sat on the non-knuckling knuckleball and launched a deep fly ball. He didn’t stand there and admire his handiwork. Instead, he immediately raced out of the box for first base. “I didn’t know it was gone. I was trying to get around the bases. Then I heard everyone go crazy. That’s when I looked up and saw the ball going over the fence,” he says. He spends enough time on football and baseball to keep himself pretty busy through most of the year. However, Ross wanted to fill the gap between those two seasons. He took a suggestion from one of his football coaches and took up wrestling. As with pitching, he enjoys the one-on-one challenge with his opponent. Ross very much likes being a part of a team, but he also enjoys individual competition. That drew him to wrestling. “It’s only you out there on the mat. Those matches were some of the toughest three minutes of my life,” he says. He finished the season with a very respectable 16-8 record. However, Ross isn’t sure what the future holds for his wrestling career. His coaches want him to continue, but he may not wrestle in high school. That’s a decision he will make next school year. As if those three sports didn’t occupy enough of Ross’ time, he also plays a little tennis. It’s not a big focus of his, but as with wrestling, it gives him an opportunity to go up against a fellow competitor in a one-on-one challenge. Ross picked up the game from a family member and occasionally plays a United States Tennis Association (USTA) tournament when the opportunity arises. Tennis season conflicts with baseball, so he doesn’t plan on playing for his school’s team. His sister, Leah, is a junior at Cook County High and plays #1 singles for the Hornets’ tennis team. He hits with her and can hold his own. “We go back and forth, but she usually wins,” he says. In two USTA tournaments, Ross has placed second and third – not bad for a casual player. He has also traveled to New York and watched the round one of the U.S. Open. He saw Roger Federer, Maria Sharapova and the Williams sisters play. “It’s amazing how hard they hit the ball,” he comments. Ross manages to balance his myriad athletic pursuits with school. His parents have encouraged him in the classroom from the time he entered school. Ross has heeded his parents’ advice and makes straight A’s. “Both sports and academics are very important to him. He gives 110 percent to both,” says Julie. Ross acknowledges that grades are more important to him than sports. Academics provide him with the opportunity to play, and he isn’t about to let one suffer in favor of the other. He admits that it’s sometimes hard to balance school and playing sports year round, but he’s committed to maintaining his grades. “I study when I get the chance, but I’m not about to let my grades slip,” he insists. His favorite subject is social studies; he enjoys history and learning about other cultures. When he isn’t playing sports, Ross enjoys hunting, fishing and riding four-wheelers. He’s also very active in his youth group at Adel United Methodist Church. • | |
January 2012
Robert Preston Jr. 
Micki K Photography 
