Rich Hambor coached junior Jake Getzendanner in football and baseball at Catonsville High during the 2015-16 school year and sees him as a leader in both sports.
Getzendanner, who was also a key starter on the basketball team, will be the starting quarterback this fall after easing into the position midway through the 2015 season.
The three-sport athlete shares the Catonsville Times Co-Athlete of the Year with senior Eric Sheppard.
Getzendanner follows in the footsteps of his older brother, Joey Getzendanner, who won the same award in 2014.
Midway through the football season, Getzendanner started rotating possessions with senior Danny Terzi at quarterback and he helped the 7-3 Comets close the season with four straight victories.
"He learned from Danny Terzi and also got a chance to be in real competitive situations and not just mop-up duty, so I think it helped the team overall," said Hambor, noting Getzendanner had a 65-yard run in a 30-22 loss to eventual Class 3A state finalist Dundalk. "I think he's a better runner than people give him credit for. You're not really sure how good a runner he is until you see him run and he's very good."
He also had his moments in the passing game during the football season.
On senior night, he threw a game-winning 21-yard touchdown pass to senior Jamal Johnson with 2:18 left in the game, giving the Comets a 19-18 comeback win over Milford Mill.
Getzendanner completed 9 of 16 passes for 145 yards in that contest.
"He really has a good instincts and that's from a lot of hours playing out in the yard and that's how you learn that," Hambor said.
Getzendanner showed off those instincts when he quarterbacked the Comets in the 6-team Middle River 7-on-7 tournament, which the Comets won at Kenwood High, June 4.
"He played the whole tournament," said Hambor, noting the games featured all passing and no pads. "That's a nice way to start the offseason."
During the school year, Getzendanner doesn't have an offseason.
He transitioned from the gridiron to the basketball court and made an immediate impression on coach Matt Fannon in his second year on the varsity.
"He just loves to play," Fannon said. "He will play the one, he will play the five. For him, it doesn't matter where you put him. He just wants to be out there competing and that's why he is so good. He can shoot from outside. He can rebound inside."
Getzendanner proved his value in a 58-50 overtime victory over Lansdowne.
Getzendanner scored his first 12 points on three-pointers and also scored five of his game-high 20 points in overtime.
After the game, which came on the heels of an impressive performance in a 48-47 victory over New Town earlier in the week, Fannon praised Getzendanner with the following comment: "Jake is a beast. This week alone he has taken leaps and bounds," Fannon said. "At New Town, he played the whole second half. He hustles, he gets rebounds, he makes shots, he attacks the rim, he does it all."
He scored 213 points for the 12-12 Comets, averaging 9 points per game. He was also the team's second leading rebounder and not afraid to show his emotions.
"He wears it on his sleeve and you see it on his face. He's just a competitor," Fannon said.
For Catonsville's 13-6 baseball team, Getzendanner truly did do it all.
He led the Comets in batting average (.456), slugging percentage (.544) on base percentage (.581), hits (26), runs (23) and he tied for the team lead in walks (15).
He also had 11 RBIs and five doubles.
Defensively, the second baseman had a .969 field percentage with two errors, 38 assists and 24 putouts.
"I think in baseball he's come along quickly and playing varsity as a sophomore gave him a lot of game experience," Hambor said. "He wasn't overwhelmed then, but now this year, nothing is new to him so that has definitely helped."
Getzendanner was named to the All-County First Team, along with Nick Grace and Matt Moulthrop, and was also selected to the 20-player District VI team with Moulthrop and Jake Parrott.
Getzendanner, Moulthrop and Ethan Alioto were also selected to play for the North Region team in the MSABC Futures game at 6 p.m. on June 29 at Bowie Baysox Stadium.
Hambor and Catonsville assistant coach Eric Warm will coach the North squad.
Hambor has also seen his emotional side that stems from his desire to win.
"Jake is somebody who will throw the glove down or kick the helmet out of frustration with himself more than anything else," Hambor said. "A lot of guys would be happy to experience the failures he has experienced."
Fortunately, his failures were minimal.
In fact, the only two strikeouts he had all season at the plate came in a season-ending 1-0 playoff loss at Bel Air.
Although he's not overly vocal, Hambor expects him to be a leader next year.
"He's a quiet guy. He doesn't really say very much. He's somebody that when he says something, people listen," Hambor said. "He really just leads by example. He doesn't really joke around too much in a good way. You just know he's taking it seriously between the lines."
Like his older brother Joey, Jake had to deal with tragedy.
During his freshman year, Feb. 15, 2014, his father, Jay Getzendanner, passed away.
His dad and mom, Patricia, were regular fans at both of the boys' games.
Jay Getzendanner graduated from Cardinal Gibbons and played football at Rutgers University and he was tough as nails.
During a game against Boston College in 1985, Jay broke his arm in the second quarter, but after preliminary X-rays were negative, he returned and made 10 tackles and deflected pass to earn Defensive Player of the Week honors.
He instilled that toughness in his kids, often having them play tackle football in the family's backyard.
"I think it (losing his dad) is always in his mind, as it always will be, and it's really a big strong voice in their head," Hambor said.
"Jake and Joey both had to step up and help mom out, and it's very tough and he was a freshman at that time," Fannon said.
Through it all, he persevered and will certainly be expected to be a leader in three sports again next year.