I think the spike narrative is overblown. Colleges are looking for interested and interesting students. That said, the higher ranked colleges like to see fairly serious accomplishments in something EC related. I had a kid with broad interests and a lot of activities, but she had a couple where she was in the top 5 in our state (one a fairly competitive academic EC, the other a sport that is not especially competitive in our state).
She had high test scores and excellent admissions results - got in e every place she applied. But… she also had a sensible list, with schools ranging from a top 5 national university to a LAC ranked around #60. All were chosen for fit, and the schools probably could tell that was the case.