Neuqua Valley senior Kiet Truong has come a long way in the past year.
It began with an unusual request, Wildcats baseball coach James Thornton recalls.
“He was struggling,” Thornton said. “So he came to me and was like, ‘Coach, can I talk to you?’”
Truong wanted to go to the junior varsity team.
“I was getting in my own head a little bit,” he said. “I felt pressure on every at-bat.
“Going down gave me more consistent playing time. I got back into that killer mentality.”
Indeed, the move provided the reset Truong craved.
“I got a chance to watch a couple of JV games, and you could see that he was rebuilding himself,” Thornton said.
Since then, Truong has been the starting quarterback for the Neuqua Valley football team and has become the top second baseman for the baseball team, not only starting but thriving. He began the week hitting .333 with 12 RBIs, which ranked second among the Wildcats (4-8-1, 2-2).
“I’m a lot more confident,” Truong said. “I’m just not nervous out there anymore. I feel so much more fluid and smooth in the box. The game has just slowed down a lot for my senior year.”
Truong’s progress in baseball was mirrored in his play at quarterback. He had started two games at QB as a junior.
“I advanced with my football IQ,” he said. “In knowing where to go with the ball, knowing where to look, I was just making more reads senior year. I was playing the game a lot smarter versus my junior year, which was more of just me using my athleticism.”
Thornton, who also played football and baseball in high school, has observed myriad benefits to Truong’s two-sport career.
“From a mental standpoint, it’s that toughness, that grittiness, that I love to see in players,” Thornton said. “When you’re a baseball player and a single-sport athlete, you’re putting your eggs in one basket. And for a lot of our two-sport and even our three-sport guys, it just opens up other opportunities for them to find success.”
Truong, who also pitches and had allowed two earned runs in 2 2/3 innings over three appearances, has noticed another benefit.
“My arm is a lot more developed,” he said. “Playing quarterback helps me with my arm care when I get to baseball.
“A lot of pitchers will use a football to warm up before games. Throwing a football keeps your shoulder healthy. In baseball, your arm usually gets sore after you throw. But with a football, it’s not as much on your arm.”
Truong teams up in Neuqua Valley’s middle infield with senior shortstop Mike Langan, who plays football too.
“We’ve been playing sports together since we were 12 years old,” Langan said. “He’s a really good teammate and a really hardworking guy. He’s vocal in the dugout and just gets the guys going. He’s really good with the younger guys too.”
Considering Truong’s development, Thornton thinks back to that crucial conversation last season.
“It was an ‘aha!’ moment,” Thornton said. “Baseball is a game of failure. Where else can you fail seven times and still be considered great?
“When you’re young, you don’t grasp that concept. That’s what I saw in Kiet last year, and that’s the separator between being a really good varsity player and being an OK varsity player. I think there was a level of growth that was needed, even in football, and I’ve seen a lot more growth since.”
Sam Brief is a freelance reporter.
