CLC’s Youel, Sigmund excel in multiple sports year-round

Crystal Lake Central's Nelle Youel is a three-sport athlete. She plays basketball, soccer and tennis. (Northwest Herald file photo)

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CRYSTAL LAKE – Last week Nelle Youel put her sweat-soaked T-shirt on a scale.

The Crystal Lake Central senior all-around athletic standout had joked about how heavy the cotton fabric felt after running through a summer camp practice for the Tigers’ girls basketball program.

She’d been in the gym since early morning, working first with the youth basketball programs and then with her Central varsity teammates. Like any other day, it was the first installment of Youel’s packed schedule that includes hours of basketball and tennis with soccer occasionally sprinkled in for good measure.

But it surprised even Youel to see a piece of proof for all her efforts.

The shirt weighed 11⁄2 pounds. It seems as though the only thing Youel and teammate Shana Sigmund do is sweat.

It’s what happens when life entirely revolves around athletics.

“I probably take about three showers every day,” Youel said with a laugh. “Sometimes I ask myself why I even bother.”

Youel and Sigmund are three sport athletes – a somewhat endangered species in the era of elite year-round club athletics and athletes focusing on becoming dominant in one – possibly two – sports in an effort to land a coveted college athletic scholarship.

But Youel and Sigmund have managed to become dominant in three, mastering the art of juggling three sports schedules with academic requirements and some athletic club activities.

“It helps that I like what I’m doing,” said Youel on Monday at Central’s varsity basketball team camp. Youel and Sigmund were finishing up in the weight room before heading to tennis practices – generally another two hour commitment – and then Sigmund planned to play in Central’s summer softball league Monday evening.

“It’s not that bad,” Sigmund insisted. “Right now it’s mostly basketball and tennis everyday, and only Mondays that I have all three.”

Youel, who has been Central’s No. 1 singles player since her freshman year and a starter on Central’s basketball and soccer teams for three seasons – will add varsity soccer camp to her schedule in July.

It means all-out athletic activity all day. The athleticism is mind-boggling, even to Central basketball coach Matt LePage.

“What [Youel] does is contagious to the rest of the team,” said LePage, “and everything she does she gives an all-out effort. The biggest thing I’ve noticed is that she is able to turn the switch on and off from one season to the next. She’s all tennis in the fall, then all basketball in the winter, then she turns her attention to soccer.

“ ... I don’t know how athletes nowadays are able to do it, but I have to utmost respect for them.”

Youel and Sigmund have been able to be a part of a massive turnaround for Central’s basketball program.

The team had won 22 total games in eight years before LePage took over in the 2008-09 season. He has guided the team to 29 total wins in his two years at the helm.

LePage sees Youel as “the quarterback” and all that athleticism – from both Youel and Sigmund – makes the basketball team deeper and stronger.

The two standouts are more than happy to help because “once you get into it,” Sigmund said, “you’re just into it.”