Rising senior Devante Cross has his fair share of gold medals. He is a multiple league and district champion in football and basketball, going a perfect 6-for-6 in earning District 11 titles for both sports combined. But heading into his final year of high school sports, Cross wants more for his teams.

"Winning league and district titles has just become another year for us at Parkland," Cross said. "We want more. We expect more. We expect to be there in the end, but we want to make it further in states. That is something we are pushing harder than ever for this year."

Cross landed on the varsity scene as a freshman, and took off running, making an immediate impact in both football and basketball. He played behind quarterback Tim Baranek, but still saw spot time. He was also a role player on the basketball team that won its first of three straight district championships in 2013.

"Being around the great coaches and great guys we have at Parkland has really helped me come along," noted Cross. "I was able to play with great athletes like Jarel [Elder] and Eli [Redmond], and I learned a lot from them."

In basketball, Cross played with teammates like Austin Beidelman, Nick Rindock, Justin Zajko and Jimmy Hahn, who did whatever they could for the program to win, and that has rubbed off on him.

That tutelage, and the valuable experience he has gotten as an underclassmen showed during his junior year in 2014-15.

In his second year as the starting quarterback, Cross led the Trojans to a share of the inaugural Eastern Pennsylvania Conference title, and the District 11 4A championship for the third straight year.

On the court, Cross was the point guard and EPC MVP while guiding Parkland to both the league and district crowns.

"It means a lot because it just shows that all of the hard work pays off," Cross said. "My teammates really helped me out a lot. I take a lot of pride in what I do. It's nothing that I think about out there, I just go out and do what I do, there's nothing difficult to it. I learned from all of the older guys I played with."

Track and field is another sport that he participates in to stay active and keep in shape for the fall and winter sports seasons. He runs the 4x100, 4x400 and competes in the high jump.

Cross grew up and came through the Parkland youth programs, beginning to play football at age seven and basketball at eight years old. He said that he doesn't like one sport more than the other, and is undecided which sport he wants to play in college. But he will have his options.

"I like both sports equally and don't know what I want to do yet," said Cross. "This summer I've been at different football camps. I'm playing summer basketball and making it to camps for that, too."

Cross is always doing something active, and his hardwork and dedication, along with his teammates and coaches, have him in a position to make deep postseason runs once again in the fall and winter this upcoming year.

Here's to 8-for-8.