Freshman Lucas Rounds is currently on the swim team at La Salle and is looking forward to the baseball season in the spring.

Rounds has only been swimming for three years, while he has been playing baseball “since I was like four or five,” Rounds said. Out of the two, baseball is his favorite sport. 

Playing two sports has made training a big part of Rounds’ life. He usually practices baseball six days a week, and swimming four to five days. Even though he has to train nearly every day for two sports, he does not get tired of them and always wants to keep pushing himself to the next level.

Rounds started his swimming career with Mt. Hood Aquatics’ club team where he swam for two years. He currently swims breaststroke and freestyle for La Salle’s swim team.

The swim season is currently in full swing and he has set a goal for himself to achieve by the end of season: “I want to get under a minute on my 100 freestyle,” Rounds said. His current time is one minute 15 seconds but he feels he can hit his goal if he keeps pushing himself.

Rounds began swimming to help strengthen himself for baseball. “I actually didn’t really like swimming when I first started it, but I’ve gotten to be more fond of it as time has gone,” Rounds said. 

He initially got into baseball at a young age because of his dad. “We used to always go in the backyard and use a tee and hit, and then I started playing tee ball, and from there just kept playing,” he said. Rounds eventually moved to playing for Mount Hood Select as his baseball club, later finding himself gearing up to play for La Salle.

At La Salle, Rounds has ambitions and goals for himself in baseball. By the end of his high school career, “I want to throw at least 85 miles per hour,” Rounds said. He admits this goal might be a little too ambitious but he believes with enough hard work he can reach it.

For Rounds, baseball is not just something he and his dad share, as his whole family loves baseball and watches him play. He is committed to playing baseball all four years he attends La Salle.

Rounds is enjoying the swim team a lot right now and a big part of his enjoyment comes from being able to make new friends. He is looking forward to playing his first year of La Salle baseball and is hoping to make even more friends in the baseball community.