With his favorite sport taken away from him, Gannon May started taking advantage of other opportunities.

And now on the brink of his final competition for Aberdeen Roncalli, the senior can look back on an impressive resume of accomplishments.

May, who became a leader for the Cavaliers on the golf course and on the tennis court, had a passion for hockey.

“It was at the top of my list. I loved it more than golf and tennis,” May said. “It was so hard to give it up.”

The trouble all started when he went to a hockey camp about five years ago and got “demolished” with a hit into the boards that resulted in a broken wrist. The wrist needed to be rebroken in order to heal properly.

That same wrist got broken again before May developed a stress fracture in his back that included a broken vertebrae in his spine. While that ended his playing days, it did not diminish his love for the sport.

“Immediately right after I quit, I got into reffing hockey,” said May, who this past year officiated the Bantam A State Tournament. “This year is my third year and I’ve loved it ever since.”

May wrapped up his final season of golf last fall and is currrently gearing up for one more state tennis tournament Monday and Tuesday in Sioux Falls.

May moved up to the top of the Roncalli lineup this spring and the jump was anything but easy. Former doubles parter AJ Prehn, who plays first flight singles for Central, offered some valuable advice before May hit his first ball against the state’s premier players.

“It’s been a grind for sure,” May said “It’s definitely been a change. It’s been fun. (AJ said) don’t worry about losing much, because you’re going to get better as you get more experience at flight one. He was definitely right about that.”

May has gone from struggling against top-quality foes earlier this spring to finishing with a flurry and ready to make some noise at the state tourney.

“At the beginning of the season, I wasn’t playing very good,” May said. “The only thing that was really working for me was my serves and as time went on, we’ve played more of these better teams and better competition, I just felt more comfortable with all my shots and felt like I was getting a lot better.”

While May undoubtedly improved his physical game, it was his mental approach that may have made the biggest difference in both golf and tennis his senior year.

“Last year, I wouldn’t say my mentality was great,” May said. “I would always get frustrated, but this year in the golf season and this tennis season, I’ve really worked on that. It’s definitely helped a lot.”

Interestingly enough, last season May played at a lower flight in a potent Roncalli lineup that had high expectations for the state tourney. This year, May mans the top spot for a team that started with lower expectations, but now has ended up in a similar situation as last year heading to state.

“I think last year I just had higher expectations with our team, and I didn’t want to let the team down at all. We knew we had a good shot at getting in the top three at state,” May said. “This year I didn’t really have much expectations to do as well. I just kind of stuck with it. I haven’t really thought about my expectations this year.”

What May has thought about this spring is the finality of everything coming to a close. There has been a lot to process.

“I’ve kind thought about it, just like oh wow, this is my last ever activity for Roncalli,” May said as he prepares for state tennis. “And definitely like the memories are all coming back to me.”

That includes a unique opportunity that May took advantage of, calling play-by-play of Roncalli volleyball matches that were livestreamed on Hub City Radio. He and friend Jackson Lewno announced Cavaliers matches for five years.

Like other things in his life, it was a challenge at first but May adapted and served in a valuable role.

“Remembering names, that was one challenge for sure, and just knowing volleyball terms, too,” May said, “because I had no idea what volleyball was really when I got into it and didn’t really know how to do play-by-play.”

Now, May is ready for the next challenge in his life and it’s safe to say that the sky is the limit. He is headed to the University of North Dakota to go into aviation.

“I don’t know what I want to do specifically yet, in terms of aviation,” May said, “I just keep telling people I want to fly, whether it’s freighters, private, commercial.”

With all that May has accomplished in the past, ironically his best memories have nothing to do with a specific event.

“I would say not really much with sports, just all the memories I’ve made with my friends,” May said. “We’ve always been a close group of friends, always competitive, always trying to do something fun.”

From the disappointment of not being able to play hockey to the joy of saving his best tennis for the most important time, it has been a unique journey for May.

“It’s been emotional,” May said, “but I’m grateful for every moment of it and I’m glad where I’m at right now.”

That includes one final moment in a Roncalli uniform competing at the state tennis tournament.

“I’ve been playing really good,” May said, “and I’m excited to see where the hard work pays off.”