By Aimee Brandon Posted June 9, 2016
As we say goodbye to the class of 2016 we say goodbye to one of Lowry’s outstanding three-sport athletes, Brian Shettler, our Student-Athlete of the Year.
Despite not starting soccer until his junior year he owned the field on varsity his junior and senior year.
“I was playing soccer with all my friends our freshman through junior years and they finally convinced me to try out my junior year and I tried out and made the team,” said Shettler.
This last soccer season Shettler was awarded All-League and 2nd Team All-State, proving his hard work.
“Brian Shettler was absolutely instrumental to the huge improvement in Lowry soccer this year. His attitude, work ethic, and leadership were truly the heart of this tremendous team. His selection to the All-State Second Team is a testament to the opinion that the other coaches in the league had of Shettler, and this is even more impressive when you consider that he was only one guy away from being selected to the First Team, and that was a very close discussion,” said soccer coach Steve Swanson.
Shettler’s favorite part of soccer is that effort is rewarded.
“My favorite part of soccer is just being able to go out every game and it’s the one sport that effort is like 100 percent part of the game, like if you give the most effort your team will win,” said Shettler.
During the winter sports season, Shettler spends his time on the basketball court. He was on the freshman team, then JV, and he spent his junior and senior years on varsity. In his junior year, the team went to the state tournament, and in his senior year, their season was cut short at Regionals.
“My favorite part of basketball is being a part of a team, working together and when your team is really on the same level connecting you feel unstoppable,” said Shettler.
Last but not least is Shettler’s favorite sport, baseball.
“My favorite sport is definitely baseball. I’ve been playing baseball the longest and I just have a super strong love for the game,” he said.
He spent his freshman and sophomore years on JV and his junior and senior years on varsity.
“Baseball is once again a team sport and the funnest part of baseball is just how much fun you can have while still playing seriously it’s a team sport but it’s a lot of one-on-one individual match-ups like when you go up to hit, it’s one-on-one against the pitcher but if you win you’re doing it for the team you aren’t really doing it for yourself,” said Shettler.
Shettler is the kind of athlete you want on your team and his coaches speak highly of him.
“I was fortunate to spend time with Brian in both soccer and baseball. In both sports, he served as a real leader and a coach on the field. He also served as a role model for others because of his work ethic,” said coach Ron Espinola.
Through sports, Shettler has had the opportunity to be a role model and have a positive influence on others, and at the same time, sports have had a positive influence on him.
“Sports have made me a much more mature person. They’ve made me a better leader, and they’ve really built some skills that will help me in the real world,” said Shettler.
