MURRIETA – Multisport athletes are a thing of the past, and a thing of the now, especially when it comes to the college recruiting realm. With the pandemic far back in the rear-view mirror, the multisport athlete has been gaining momentum. It appears that less and less ‘specializing’ is taking place for student-athletes that are now competing in three, four, five and sometimes six sports per athletic year.
One area prep athlete took his competitive nature to the Vista Murrieta High School soccer fields over the winter sports season and then turned around and helped the Broncos win a Southwestern League boys volleyball title in their recent spring season.
Not only was 6-foot-6 senior Brandon Underwood a standout goal keeper for the boys varsity soccer team, he set the bar as a middle blocker for Vista Murrieta on the volleyball courts as well. The Broncos went 10-0 in league, were 20-5 overall, and made their way to the quarterfinals of the CIF Southern Section Division 3 playoffs. A 3-2 loss to El Segundo wrapped up their season in early May.
With his successful season behind him, and now a recent 2023 graduate of the school, Underwood was also recently selected as First Team All-CIF in Division 3. He was the only local area athlete from this past boys’ volleyball season to get the selection.
With coaches being more and more open to having their student athletes play multiple sports in one season, and having their athletic directors on board as well, expect to see more athletes like Underwood excel across the board in the coming years.
JP Raineri can be reached by email at sports@reedermedia.com.
