Extra Effort: Layton Dupree does it all for Tarboro High School
"See ball hit ball," is how Tarboro senior Layton Dupree explains his strategy at the plate. "Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't.
Dupree takes a crack during batting practice.
"Hand shot," Dupree says as he doesn't get all of it, then watches it sail just over the left field fence. "Oh it went out."
Dupree is as humble as he is strong.
"I've hit better," he says while walking out of the batters box.
Whatever Dupree tries at Tarboro High School he tends to succeed. His primary position on the baseball team is catcher, but on senior night he's in to pitch. Last season he played shortstop.
"I think it shows how hard he works and the kind of kid he is that he puts that kind of effort into everything he does," Tarboro head baseball coach Zachary Parisher said.
Dupree has been a Tarboro baseball captain all four years and the team MVP the last three. He was first team all state in 1A in 2021 and 2022. Next season he'll play for Barton College.
"It feels like everybody, all the kids are trying to focus on one sport," Dupree said. "To me it helps to play a lot of different sports, because you're activating different parts of your body."
Dupree is doing more than activating. In the fall he played soccer and football, in the winter basketball and swimming, in the spring baseball and golf.
"I ask him time after time where do you get the time to do all this stuff?" Parisher laughed.
"Time management has been a big part of it," Dupree said. "Being able to negotiate my time and give everything I've got to each sports is the hardest thing."
Six sports require their share of energy, but Dupree always has some in reserve for school. He graduated valedictorian.
"School is probably the most important thing to me," Dupree said. "Scholar-athlete, scholar comes first."
Dupree's versatile talents and tireless worth ethic earned him the WRAL Tom Suiter Extra Effort award. His accomplishments will be remembered in Tarboro for years to come.
"We aren't a big town by any means," Dupree said. "From here everyone is close knit. It's more like a family here."
