Kesni Tausinga is a jewelry connoisseur. More specifically, he likes to collect state title rings.

The big man from Bingham just wins championships; as a defensive tackle for the Miners football team last November, as a member of the Highland rubgy team, and most recently the 285-pound Class 5A wrestling title.

This past Friday, Tausinga won his third ring by dominating Syracuse's Tyler Larsen, showing excellent quickness and agility in the match to pin Larsen at 1:44 mark of the first round.

"This is what it's all about," said wrestling coach Matt Walker after Tausinga's championship win. "You root for a kid like Kesni. The amount of time and effort he put into this program has been unbelievable."

Tausinga dominated the early rounds of the state tournament, pinning each of his opponents along the way. Pinning all four of your opponents in states is akin to a pitcher throwing three or four no-hitters in the state tournament for baseball. It's almost unheard of.

"I knew coming in that I had a chance at winning the whole thing," Said Tausinga, "I just didn't think it would all be by pins."

He was also the anchor of a dominating Miner defense in football, often taking on double teams from the offensive line, making it easier for his linebackers to roam and make plays unblocked. His presence helped Bingham allow only 41 total points in 5 region games.

Tausinga is also a starting prop for the legendary Highland rugby team, and helped them win a state title last May. A prop in rugby is similar to a wedge buster on special teams in football. They need to run directly into the oppositions line rather than running around it.

Rugby is not sanctioned by the USHAA, because it needs half of the schools in the state to participate in the sport, which it does not have. Thus Tausinga is allowed to play for Highland, which is a club team.

Tausinga is a jack of all trades, and the one constant is that he wins. Hard work and hustle is what he hangs his hat on at the end of the day, and that strong work ethic is why he is a multi-sport champion. It's also every coach's dream, because Tausinga brings the intangibles that teams need, no matter what the sport is.

"He may not show up on the stat sheet at the end of the game," said his football coach Dave Peck, "But trust me, Kesni was a huge part of the defense this year."

Walker discovered Kesni as an eighth-grader at South Jordan Middle School, giving him a taste of wrestling by having him spar with other grapplers. Tausinga took the sport right away and the rest is history.

Tausinga finished his junior season 37-3, and has already staked himself to be the favorite heavyweight coming into next season, as will the Miner football team and Highland rugby team this year.

With all those wins, comes expectations, and for some athletes the chance to kick back and take it easy. Not for Tausinga.

"You have to get better every day." Said Tausinga, "If you don't work towards that, someone else will, and they will knock you off your spot."

So many high school athletes go four years without winning a single playoff game, let alone a championship, yet Tausinga has now won three state titles in less than a year. And at the rate he is going, he will have one hand full of state rings by the end of 2010.

"I'm blessesd man," Said Tausinga, "They way this year has gone for me has been so amazing, I don't want it to end."

Yeah, but the opponents left in his wake sure would.