To the average high school in eastern North Carolina, the names Tainasha Vines and Chazz Surratt likely don’t trigger any sort of reaction from the fan base. But to those, players, coaches and spectators associated with the Washington volleyball and football programs, both of which competed in the 2-A state tournament last fall, they are difficult names to forget.

Vines, a senior, almost single-handedly navigated the No. 24-seeded Bunn volleyball team (16-8, 10-4 Northern Carolina) to the third round of the NCHSAA state playoffs, knocking off a confident, senior-laden Pam Pack team, 3-1, in the second round.

Surratt, a junior, quarterbacked the East Lincoln football team (16-0, 7-0 Southern District 7) to the 2-A state championship game, where the Mustangs edged the 14-win Pam Pack by an extra point in Winston-Salem.

Despite both Vines and Surratt competing at the 2-A level, opposed to a larger 3-A or 4-A school, the pair was honored by the NCHSAA last week with the Athlete-of-the-Year Award.

Yes, Vines served as a solitary roadblock to the Pam Pack volleyball team and Surratt’s throwing accuracy may have been the ultimate difference in the championship, but it’s nothing the Washington players should hang their heads about. Award aside, both are once-in-a-decade, multi-sport talents that lean on their sheer athletic ability to perform at a high level.

And colleges have taken notice. Vines earned a track and field scholarship to the University of North Carolina, while Surratt, committing to play football at Duke University, could very well be the next Anthony Boone for the Blue Devils.

Vines outstanding high school career is built upon her individual track state championships in the long jump and high jump, with a strong chance of the senior repeating in both. In volleyball, Vines used her unrivaled elevation from track and applied it to the outside hitter position in volleyball, garnering Northern Carolina Conference Player of the Year and become the school’s all-time leader in kills. And if that wasn’t enough, Vines also averaged 20.7 points and 11.2 rebounds per game on the hardwood, becoming only the fourth player in state history to post a quadruple double, according to a press release from the NCHSAA.

Surratt was also a dominant multi-sport athlete leading his team to the state championship, averaging 20 points, 6.7 rebounds and eight assists per game, while taking home the Southern District 7 Player of the Year Award in both basketball and football. He did it all with a torn meniscus in his knee, an injury suffered early in the football season, according to the NCHSAA.

While Vines graduates this month, Surratt’s return makes East Lincoln an instant favorite to make another run at a 2-A state championship.

The Washington football team will graduate 26 seniors in a few weeks. If the Pam Pack wants to stick to its goal of a state title, there’s a good chance it will have to go through the state’s top talent to accomplish that feat.