Whether he is catching for the Bangor High School baseball team, practicing the art of Mixed Martial Arts (MMA), or saving lives, senior Jake Caserta lightens up the lives of those around him one smile at a time.

Caserta started his love for baseball at just five years’ old

“Playing baseball has always been a passion of mine, which is why I’ve played for as long as I have. The bond that you grow with your teammates is amazing and is part of what I love most about the sport,” Caserta said.

Caserta’s position plays an important role during games, keeping him on his toes, literally – as catcher.

“I’m in the center of the action. Being catcher keeps me in great physical shape and it is the only position where you can see the entire field of play,” Caserta said.

With over ten years of playing baseball under his belt, Caserta has made memories to last a lifetime.

“Hands down, the best moment in my baseball career was when we played Notre Dame last year. We went into extra innings with a score 0-0. Bryan Beam hit a walk off single to beat the second best team in the Colonial League,” Caserta said.

Caserta’s athleticism doesn’t just stop at baseball; he also carries his talents into the world of MMA.

“I always loved watching UFC and found the amount of risks the fighters take to maintain a living interesting. I wanted to know the extents of what they were doing and how they did it. Plus, knowing how to safely defend myself without causing serious harm to the other person was also something I was interested in learning,” Caserta said.

Caserta began practicing MMA in summer of 2017, and although he has only been partaking for a short amount of time, Caserta already has a multitude of great moments to look back on from his training.

“My training partner and I were sparring in Jui Jitsu and I ended up getting him into a rear naked choke and body triangle. I ended up choking him unconscious – by accident of course,” Caserta said.

As a senior, Caserta has experienced all the obstacles high school has to offer, but it always seemed that high school had a lot more ups than downs.

“When I graduate I think I will miss having none of the adult responsibilities that comes with being eighteen,” Caserta said.

Nostalgia is certainly common senior year, and Caserta is no stranger to the feeling.

“Not being able to see friends who I’ve spent every day with for years is hard to come to terms with, but I am looking forward to growing up and doing my own thing,” Caserta said.

During the fall semester of Caserta’s senior year, he started his training to become an EMT.

“I went to shadow in the ER last summer and seeing the EMTs bringing in patients seemed like an amazing job. I wanted to see what the patients were like in prehospital settings,” Caserta said.

Caserta has been faced with many different scenarios throughout his training, but with his calm and collected personality, overcoming those challenges was a piece of cake.

“The training we had to do to learn the best way to care for a patient and give the best patient report for the nurses that will continue the care. It was very difficult to learn how to do,” Caserta said.

Caserta has decided to continue his education at Stevenson University in Maryland to study nursing in hopes of becoming a nurse anesthetist.

“One thing I have learned from my time training as an EMT is that everyone has their own problems in life and no one should ever take advantage of the situation you are in,” Caserta said.

Life is full of hardships and challenges, but with a good soul and caring heart, Caserta will absolutely accomplish anything he sets his mind to.