Published: June 14, 2008 11:37 pm            

YOUTH SPORTS WEEKLY: Austin Hines is staying busy this summer

Austin Hines is just one of those kids who can’t sit still.

Summer hardly means vacation time for the Jeff/GRC Little Leaguer, it’s just an extension of an already crowded sports slate for the 12-year-old.

Entering his seventh grade year at River Valley — Hines has found time on his schedule just about every sport his school offers during the year.

Summer simply means it’s time to hit the diamond, where Hines plays for the Reds in the Jeff/GRC Major League Division.

Hines found time in his schedule recently to talk to The Evening News and The Tribune about being the star of many shows.



QUESTION: So baseball isn’t even close to the only sport you’re involved with. What else do you play?

AUSTIN HINES: “I do about all of them at my school. I play basketball, track. I’m going to play football next year in seventh grade. The only one I haven’t done is cross country.”

Q: Got a favorite?

HINES: “Not really. I like them all. My friends are on most of my teams.”

Q: I hear you’re pretty good on the basketball court. How’d your team do this past year?

HINES: “We won the championship in sixth grade. I played point guard.”

Q: What NBA player do you model your game after?

HINES: “Probably Chris Paul. I’m a point guard.”

QUESTION: What do you do on the track?

HINES: The 100 (meters), 200 and some relays. I ran the 100 in about 12.8 last year.

Q: In baseball, you got to play on the Jeff/GRC 11-year-old All-Stars last year that won the state championship. What was that like?

HINES: “It really was a lot of fun. We got to go on the road, and play a lot of teams that we wouldn’t get to play if we weren’t at state. Then we stayed overnight the whole time we were playing. It was lots of fun.”

Q: This year, if you can win state again as a 12-year-old, you get to play for something pretty big.

HINES: “Yeah, if we win state, we get a chance to play for the Little League World Series. We’ve talked about how awesome that would be, to play on TV and stuff.”

Q: What position do you play in baseball?

HINES: Pitcher, catcher, outfield. A little bit of everywhere.

Q: Which do you say is your best one?

HINES: Probably center field. That’s where I play in All-Stars.

Q: Every kid has a favorite baseball player. Who’s yours?

HINES: Jose Reyes of the Mets. He steals a lot of bases, and I like to do that too.”

        

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