ST. PAULS — Kemarion Baldwin’s 2021-22 school year began last fall with a record-setting football season at St. Pauls.

But that was just the start.

Baldwin was a key contributor on successful basketball and baseball teams, while also participating in the state championships in track and field.

After exhibiting a consistently high level of performance for the full school year across all four sports, Baldwin is The Robesonian’s first All-Around Male Athlete of the Year.

“It’s always busy,” Baldwin said. “Normally when the season’s over, I’ll be like, we had a good season, but I’ve just got to turn around and put the work in for the next sport.”

A 5-foot-9, 215-pound junior, Baldwin starred at running back for the Bulldogs football team before playing power forward on the basketball court and outfielder on the diamond, also sprinting on the track team.

“A lot of times you see multi-sport athletes, they’re not the same type of athlete across different disciplines basically,” St. Pauls football coach Mike Setzer said. “He translates — every time, every sport, he’s the best guy on the field. He’s a top competitor, and he’s also a top leader. His leadership, he may go to another sport and he may not be the top dog in that sport, like in basketball, but he was one of the top leaders. And a 5-foot-9 power forward — that speaks for itself.”

Successful seasons across four sports — especially after a season of historic proportions on the gridiron — is the visible result of Baldwin’s work ethic.

“(It takes) hard work and dedication,” Baldwin said. “You’ve got to commit yourself to each sport. You’ve got to eat right; you’ve got to put everything into it. You ain’t just going to go out there and perform; you’ve got to keep your body up to a standard so you can perform in those sports.”

And as is often the case with multi-sport athletes, Baldwin credits each sport with helping him to be better in the others.

“Basketball helps me with track because of all the conditioning and running the floor,” Baldwin said. “Basketball helps me with my footwork for football too. Baseball keeps my mind locked in, because baseball you’ve got to be locked in to be a good baseball player — as a running back, the quick reads on the field helps me.”

“When kids play multiple sports it makes them all-around better,” said Matthew Hunt, St. Pauls’ baseball coach and athletic director. “Playing football has got him as quick as he is, as strong as he is. Baseball has contributed to his hand-eye coordination. Basketball, when he plays basketball it shows his mental toughness, when he’s out there on the court grabbing rebounds. Every sport he plays contributes to everything he does and who he is being an athlete.”

Baldwin rushed for 2,483 yards — a Robeson County record and the 73rd most in a season in state history — and 36 touchdowns last fall, helping lead the Bulldogs to the fourth round of the state playoffs; he was also a key piece in the team’s run to the 2AA state championship game in the spring of 2021. Baldwin set the county single-game rushing record in two separate games last season; the second was a 460-yard performance, the seventh most in state history, with six touchdowns in a playoff win over Roanoke Rapids, with every yard needed in an overtime thriller.

The running back is the workhorse of the St. Pauls offense, routinely carrying the ball around 30 times per game. His physicality makes him hard to tackle, while his speed allows him to break free in the open field.

Given his gridiron greatness, it should come as no surprise that Baldwin considers football his favorite of the four sports he plays.

“I can express myself in football more than I can in baseball and stuff,” Baldwin said. “Basketball, baseball and track I can’t really put my hands (on people), but football … if you make me mad I’m going to punish you.”

But Baldwin still feels at home on the baseball field and basketball court. He had a team-high .423 batting average this spring with four home runs, 28 RBIs and 31 runs scored as the baseball Bulldogs reached the third round of the state playoffs, and averaged 2.4 points and 3.3 rebounds per game as the basketball team won conference regular-season and tournament championships and reached the fourth round of the state playoffs.

“Baseball is not too far (behind football); it’s right there,” Baldwin said. “I grew up playing baseball, I was good at baseball, I’ve dedicated myself to playing baseball — then football came and took everything away (from baseball). Basketball, the same way, I’ve still got the love for basketball — in my mind I still feel like I’m baby Lebron.”

Baldwin’s basketball stats don’t fully portray the impact he had on the court; he was a key screen setter and a strong rebounder, even as one of the shortest players on the court, using that physicality to his advantage.

“He has a very high basketball IQ. I can only imagine he’s the same way in the other sports too as well,” St. Pauls basketball coach Corey Thompson said. “I don’t think you just naturally do it based on your ability; you have to have some type of savvy. … Rebounding is about toughness. K.B. started for us, not because he can defend, but he was really a glue piece for us. He rebounded the ball, he made the right plays, he screened, he didn’t mind sacrificing his body; he just did all those things you’re supposed to do.”

Baldwin was also part of the Bulldogs’ 4×100 relay team which finished sixth at the 2A State Championship in Greensboro last month, running the first leg of the race.

While Baldwin’s well-rounded athletic abilities are valuable in each sport he plays, each coach touts his off-field importance as well.

“He’s a tremendous leader. He leads our entire athletic program, in the classroom and on the field,” Hunt said. “The kids see him put in that work in the weight room, put in that work at practice, and they see how all that work has solidified his name on game night. … He carries himself like a leader, like a champion, and does not allow his teammates to accept failure or carry themselves with any less demeanor.”

“He comes every day to work, he’s got a great attitude and an awesome work ethic,” Setzer said. “He’s one of the first to get here and the last to leave. To be able to do that through all the sports sets such an example for our athletes.”

And Baldwin’s role on each team will only continue to expand into an even larger leadership position as he enters his senior year this fall.

“Even though I wasn’t the best guy on the team (in basketball and baseball), I always try to be a leader,” Baldwin said. “I feel like I’m going to take on a bigger responsibility (as a senior) in the other sports. Baseball, I’ve been on varsity since I was a freshman, and basketball, I was on varsity last year, so my knowledge for those sports has really picked up. I feel like I can help a lot of young guys.”

Baldwin’s long-term athletic future lies in football, and he currently has four collegiate offers including Division-I Campbell.

“It’s in God’s hands,” Baldwin said. “Right now I’m waiting on a couple of schools to get back to me on where I’m at offer-wise, but it’s looking good for me.”

But before that, he’s still got a lot of high school sports to play — four more seasons.