This is a printer-friendly version of an article from Zip06.com.
04/27/2017 12:00 AMJunior Zack Orth is a two-sport athlete who plays both football and lacrosse at North Haven High School. Zack brings a physical presence to each of his teams, and that gives him a big-time edge when he’s out there on the field.
“Both football and lacrosse, hitting is just there,” says Zack. “The hitting in football helps with the hitting in lacrosse, using the physical aspect of it. It gets me the upper hand on the non-football players because they hit less and are less aggressive.”
Zack’s size and athleticism make him a force for North Haven’s boys’ lacrosse squad. Zack, a midfielder, is constantly on the field and has already recorded 16 goals for the Indians, who are 5-1 through the first few weeks of the season.
“He’s bigger, faster, and stronger than most of the kids guarding him. He can get his head around kids fairly easily and he’s worked on his shot religiously for the last couple of years and he’s starting to reap the benefits from that, accompanied with leg and core strength,” Head Coach Eric Bailey says. “If you’ve watched our games, you’ll see we don’t sub often, which is unheard of in the SCC.”
While many players might tire in that situation, Zack thrives in it, and enjoys being on the field for the duration of the game.
“We do a lot of conditioning. It starts with football as we do lifting and running. We just try to keep moving,” he says. “It gets you used to it. My sophomore season was similar where we were in for the entire game. Sure, we’re tired, but we dealt with it. You have to deal with it because we have to come through for our team.”
Zack loves how he’s able to patrol all ends of the turf in his midfielder’s position. Zack feels that type of freedom allows him to maximize his strengths.
“I’ve always been a face-off midfielder kind of guy. I’ve always been in the midfield and have never done anything else. I like playing both sides of the ball because I think it’s fun to be able to score and defend,” says Zack. “I’ve just been open a lot, so I’ve kind of taken advantage of what I’ve been given. I feel like scoring has been my role so far in the season.”
Zack suits up at fullback on offense and plays linebacker on defense as a member of North Haven’s football team. Last fall, Zack led the Indians with 76 tackles and also rushed for a touchdown. As a top defensive player, Zack is constantly communicating with his colleagues on the gridiron, and he’s carried that approach over to the lacrosse squad.
“I see myself as more of a leader. I’m more vocal than a lot of the other guys on defense and I felt that was more of my role,” Zack says. “I do try to be a leader in lacrosse, but there is a lot of leadership already with our four captains, but I still put my two cents in whenever it’s needed. I try to be vocal, so I’m doing the same things as I am in football.”
Zack appreciates the similarities between his two sports and says that some of the things he’s learned in football have played a heavy hand in his progression as a lacrosse player.
“They do go hand in hand,” says Zack. “There’s a lot more contact in football and it’s taught me to stand my ground, use my hips, and how to change direction.”
After a fast start to the spring season, Zack wants the Indians to keep pushing hard, so they can qualify for both the SCC and State tournaments and then make some noise when they get there.
“My goals would be to keep scoring and trying to keep help my team win,” says Zack. “We have to go forward and keep getting better.”