Senior athletes rarely come in the determined, wise form that Jake Stone appears in. After four years of baseball and football, Stone acquired great memories, a greater perspective on his time at Ames High, and a excited outlook for his future.

Baseball has been an extremely influential part of Stone’s life.

“I started playing tee-ball as long ago as I can remember, and it’s always been something I love doing,” said Stone.

While most of the season covers the first half of the summer with daily practices and games, he continues to persevere through every season.

“I still have a great summer spent with my closest friends. I’ve become brothers with the guys on the team,” said Stone.

As the time the time spent with his team increased, the number of funny stories skyrocketed. One of his most memorable moments from over the years was Van 302. Basically, it involved a van full of high school baseball players, annoying questioning, and a smoothie being thrown… If you want to know the rest, Stone will chuckle as he reminisces of the “good times.”

Now that his time in high school is drawing to a close, Stone’s future looks bright at the University of Iowa as a double major in pre-business and sports and recreation management.

“I first became interested when I took a sports entertainment marketing class with Mr. Seifert my sophomore year,” said Stone, “but after contacting and meeting with the head of the program at Iowa I was really hooked.”

At the University of Iowa, Stone will be working hard in class, enjoying his new freedom, and taking frequent visits to old friends in Loveland, Ohio, his hometown.

While Stone can’t wait to begin at Iowa, he is grateful for his time at Ames High and urges students to take charge of every second.

“Stay determined and work as hard as you can. Sometimes I got the short end of the stick, but if you work hard and stay involved you’ll end up getting what you’re aiming for.”