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Washington senior Connor Edwards earned Eastern Plains Conference player of the year honors on the baseball diamond last spring and followed it up with an All-Conference fall in soccer. Edwards plays second base and pitches and was a midfielder in the fall. The Washington native is a National Honor Society member with 4.62 GPA and wants to do big things after high school.

1. Which sport would you pick if you could only play one?

Connor: Soccer, but I really enjoy playing both, mainly because of my teammates. I’ve known most of them for a long time and it’s fun to compete against travel teammates in soccer, because there’s a lot of talking and fun rivalries on the field. Baseball is more laid back, but it’s fun to be outside playing with my friends.

2. Were you surprised to win player of the year in baseball as a junior?

Connor: Not really, because baseball is a statistical sport and my numbers were right up there. (He hit .485 with 21 runs scored and 32 hits in 22 games.) It’s an honor to be recognized by the coaches and it’s a product of years of work. My dad has coached me forever on my swing and it’s a lot more consistent. Hard work leads to success and I hope I can have more this year.

3. What is the hardest part of being a lead-off batter in baseball?

Connor: Getting on base to eventually score is key for a lead-off guy. I always try to see a couple of pitches, but I also I always think about hitting a line drive over shortstop or second. You also have to swing at strikes, not bad pitches. Learning the strike zone and having enough discipline to lay off bad pitches comes through repetition, so it takes time to be a good lead-off batter.

4. What are your sports highlights so far?

Connor: Hopefully, the baseball ones are still ahead, but I’d say beating Greene Central on their field and playing the first game on our new soccer field. We’ve had a good rivalry with Greene Central since I’ve been here and it was fun to score in the last 30 seconds and beat them. We’ve been talking about a new field here for so long that I didn’t think it would happen until after I graduated. It was a big accomplishment to finally finish it and it was really cool to win the first game ever.

5. What are your plans after graduation?

Connor: I’ve been accepted into North Carolina State to study computer science. I am interested in the software and programming side of the business and am really into quantum computing. Being a part of developing the future and maybe changing the world is exciting to me.