HHS Senior Sam Renz was recently announced as the male student-athlete of the class of 2021. This is a huge accomplishment for any student because it shows incredible ability to balance both athletics and academics, while also excelling at them.

Renz participated in Cross Country all 4 years of high school, Spring track grades 9-12 as well, and winter track grades 10-11. Besides sports, Renz is a peer mentor for incoming freshman and enjoys playing the guitar in music shows like the coffee house events held by the Art Honor Society throughout the years.

Becoming the male student-athlete of the grade is no easy task. Renz has completed numerous AP courses including AP Physics 1, 2, C, AP Calculus AB and BC, AP US History, AP Statistics, and AP Chinese. Despite taking such a rigorous course load, Renz has maintained a remarkable GPA while handling the busy scheduling of sports, school, work, and other extracurricular activities.

When asked if he was surprised to earn this title, Renz said he was very surprised. “I thought it would be based on skill level and academics. But I’m glad I got it because it shows how hard I’ve had to work while training for track on top of taking all these hard classes. There were times when I considered quitting to have more time for schoolwork, but I decided to keep going, and I’m very glad it paid off.”

All of his hard work has brought Renz another great accomplishment; he will be attending the University of Maryland this fall, studying aerospace engineering in their highly regarded aerospace program as a member of their Honors Program as well. Renz is excited to finally study the subjects that interest him and is looking forward to a career in engineering. Clearly, being named the class of 2021’s male student-athlete is just one of many accomplishments to come.