Souply hones skills with hard work
Adam Souply’s form seems almost effortless when he puts up one of his patented jump shots. The basketball releases smoothly from his hands and usually finds the bottom of the net. It may look easy and natural, but it wasn’t always that way for the 17-year-old Frazier High School senior.
“I started working on my shot a lot during the summer after seventh grade,” said Souply, the son of Mark and Rose Souply of Fayette City. “I put in a lot of hours of practice, because before that my shot wasn’t really very good. It eventually came around to where I guess I’m a pretty good shooter now. I still have to work on it to stay sharp.”
That shot became one of the main reasons Souply wound up with a career total of 1,223 points for the Commodores.
Souply scored well in the classroom, too. He had a 4.08 grade point average and was ranked eighth in his class.
Souply was selected as the top male student/athlete at Uniontown High School and will receive a $500 scholarship through Davis & Davis Student/Athlete Scholarship Program.
The program, sponsored by Davis & Davis Law Firm and coordinated by the Herald-Standard, will culminate with a banquet to be held at 5 p.m. Sunday at Shady Side Inn.
Souply is a member of the National Honor Society and was Student of the Month for the Belle Vernon Rotary Club. This will mark the second time this year Souply was recognized as a scholar/athlete.
Souply was a four-year letterman in both basketball and baseball for the Commodores. He earned All-County honors the past three years in both sports. He was named all-section in basketball the past two years.
“I’ve been playing baseball since I was four, and I started basketball right about third grade,” said Souply, who has one brother, 14-year-old Aaron. “I’ve always been pretty athletic.”
Just as he had to put in countless hours to hone his jump shot, Souply had to sharpen his mound skills in baseball.
“I really preferred to play the outfield, but we needed some pitchers,” Souply said. “It took a lot of work to make me a pitcher. Coach (Ray) Smitley showed me how to throw a slider last year, and I’ve got that working pretty good now.”
Souply developed his pitching enough to throw a shutout at defending WPIAL Class A champion California this past season.
Basketball is his first love, however.
One of Souply’s fondest memories came last season when Frazier went 19-6 under coach Dave Vindivich and snapped a decade-long playoff losing streak with a 68-55 victory over Sewickley Academy.
“That’s something I’ll never forget,” Souply said. “We got off to the best start in school history, and winning the playoff game was a big thrill for us. It was a real fun year.”
Souply’s biggest individual thrill came during his sophomore season.
“We were at home against Charleroi and I hit a 3-pointer at the end of the game to tie it,” said Souply, who is a huge Michael Jordan fan. “We went on to win in overtime. It was my high game of the season, 23 points.”
The Commodores didn’t fare well in Souply’s senior season under first-year coach P.J. Malloy, but he had nothing but praise for his mentor.
“Both Coach Vindivich and Coach Malloy pushed me since my freshman year and made me a better player,” Souply said. “During the summer, Coach Malloy would write down my strengths and weaknesses and show me what he thought I had to work on.”
Although he never played football, Souply also gives credit to coach Larry Wilson for helping him athletically.
“He got me into weight lifting and showed me the importance of that,” Souply said.
Souply thanked his father as well.
“Dad was always pushing me and offering encouragement,” Souply said. “We always talked before and after games. He was a great teacher and supporter.”
Souply, who is currently playing American Legion baseball for Perryopolis, hasn’t made a decision on college yet.
“I’m probably either going to go to Waynesburg to play basketball, or either West Virginia Wesleyan, Davis & Elkins or the University of Charleston to play baseball.”
One of those schools will be greatly improved with the addition of Adam Souply.