Sunday, September 28, 2003

By Mike White, Post-Gazette Sports Writer

It has been said two-sport athletes aren't as common on the high school level these days. That's what makes Adam Lippencott rare. He's a two-sport athlete -- in the same season.

	Adam Lippencott of Moon has not lost in a dual cross-country meet this season. (Annie O'Neill, Post-Gazette)

Lippencott is a 5-foot-11, 155-pound senior at Moon High School who runs on the cross country team and also plays soccer. Soccer and cross country are fall sports.

But Lippencott doesn't just compete in both sports. He is excelling, serving as captain of both teams. He is the No. 1 runner on the cross country team and has not lost in a dual meet this season.

In soccer, he is a standout sweeper and one of the reasons Moon has given up only eight goals in the past 10 games. The Tigers are 9-1-2 and the Post-Gazette's No. 1-ranked WPIAL Class AA team.

There have been many soccer players in the WPIAL over the years who have been kickers on the football team. But that pales in comparison to Lippencott's two-sport combination.

"It's truly an amazing feat when you think about it," said Moon soccer coach Arne Thomas.

Lippencott probably spends more time at Moon High School in the fall than the principal or any teacher. Many days, he'll run four or five miles in cross country practice after school, get finished around 4:30 and head straight to soccer practice. In preseason camps, Lippencott would train with the cross country team in the morning, and then attend two practices with the soccer team later in the day.

Thomas thinks Lippencott's fuel gauge is broken because it never seems to go down to "E."

"It's hard for me to describe his fitness level because I've never seen anything like it before," said Thomas, in his 12th season as coach. "I call him a freak of nature."

Moon has a cross country meet and a soccer game on most Tuesdays -- and Lippencott usually makes both events. Two Tuesdays ago, he ran in the cross country meet at home against Montour. Afterward, he quickly ate a lunch he packed for himself, got on a school bus and made the trip to West Allegheny for a soccer game.

Moon cross country coach Larry Covelli also believes Lippencott is an athlete to behold.

"He's like that [Energizer] Bunny. He just keeps going," Covelli said. "To gear yourself up for two different sports is tough mentally. To excel in both sports takes a very tough mental composition."

But Lippencott has a question concerning his athletic exploits. What's the big deal?

"Personally, I don't think too much of it," he said. "Some people think it's a big deal. But to me, it's just what I do."

Lippencott also is a decent student, carrying a 3.0 grade-point average. He apparently is a master at time management.

"My freshman year, my grades were a little lower," he said. "But it's never come to a problem where I have to lay off sports because my grades are too low."

This fall isn't the first time Lippencott has competed in both sports. He did it as a freshman -- on the JV soccer team and the varsity cross country team. As a sophomore, he played only soccer because of an ankle injury. Last year, Lippencott did both sports, but had a problem one day in late October. The WPIAL cross country championships were the same day as a Moon soccer playoff game. He chose to skip the cross country championships and play soccer. The same conflict could occur this year.

Soccer appears to be Lippencott's No. 1 sport. He never misses a practice or game in that sport. He sometimes misses cross country practices and has skipped a few meets.

"The coaches have been great with this," Lippencott said. "At the beginning of the year, my cross country coach sat down with me and we went over the schedule. He said, 'OK, these are the races we need you to be at.'"

Lippencott finished third at the Boardman (Ohio) Invitational a few weeks ago. Last spring, he finished seventh in the 800-meter run at the WPIAL Class AAA track championships.

"If he focused on just cross country, I think he could finish in the top 10 at the WPIAL championships," Covelli said. "I think finishing third at the Boardman Invitational opened his eyes. He's learning how to race. Qualifying for states [PIAA championship] is a very real possibility for him."

Lippencott would like to compete in soccer or cross country in college.

"He can definitely play soccer at the next level, but what level of college can vary," Thomas said.

Lippencott said, "Soccer has been the sport I've always played, but now running seems like it might be my best shot of going somewhere for college."

Ask Lippencott his goals for the future and he has an interesting response.

"I'd just like to be a run-of-the-mill average guy," Lippencott said, "but still someone who can do something amazing, like flip over a car just because he really wanted to."

Like what he's doing this fall isn't amazing.

Covelli said, "He really is a coach's dream."

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