April 19, 2007

Sam Borchers and Evan Firestone will soon be off to Pennsylvania State University and Wright State University, respectively, on running scholarships.

By Virgil Hervey

Last Thursday at Yellow Springs High School, just as last period was about to end, Principal John Gudgel came on the PA system and invited the members of the school’s track and cross country teams to come to the library. “Gudge” as his students call him, had the library set up for a special ceremony to honor star runners Sam Borchers and Evan Firestone, who were there to sign letters of intent with Division I universities that had offered them scholarships. Gudgel, a star high school and college runner himself, seemed as proud as any of the parents or coaches who had come to witness the event.

The team members sat quietly as Gudgel lectured them on the necessity of balancing academics with athletics as a way to get an athletic scholarship. Only a few are ever able to achieve the honor, he said, and it would not be afforded to those who do not study.

Seated at a table at the front of the room, Borchers and Firestone signed page after page of the documents before them. Their parents, Theresa and Jerome Borchers and Elizabeth and Bill Firestone, and their coach Vince Peters stood behind them. As the signing came to and end, the parents each took an opportunity to thank Gudgel, the school, the coaches and the community as a whole for providing such a supportive environment.

Interviewed later, Jerome Borchers said he was choked up by the ceremony and hoped that he hadn’t forgotten to thank Gudgel and Peters. He said that he and his wife “feel really good” about their decision to move to Yellow Springs when Sam was in the sixth grade.

Borchers, last year’s Division III state champion in the 800 and 1600 meters and the fastest miler overall in the state, chose a track scholarship from Penn State over offers from Ohio State University, University of Tennessee and Wright State. His time of 3:46.32 in the 1500 meters at the USA Track and Field Junior Nationals last year translates into a 4:04 mile and made him the second fastest high school miler in the country. He won the state Division III cross country championship this fall and started off the 2007 track season by winning the mile at the Nike High School Indoor Track and Field Nationals in Maryland last month.

Firestone, who ran in his first race as a junior, accepted a cross country scholarship from Wright State. He was All-Ohio in Division III at the state cross country meet this year, where he finished twelfth. According to Borchers, Firestone, who is running the 3200 meters in only his second track season, has already posted the third or fourth fastest time in Division III this year. He started running as a way to get in shape for basketball, Firestone said. Wright State has an established cross country team and is just starting up a track and field program, he said.

After the ceremony, Borchers said that he chose Penn State over the other schools because of the learning environment and the positive attitude of the students he met, both on and off the track team. “Everybody seemed excited to be there,” he said.

Another plus for Borchers is the fact that the school’s new head track coach, Beth Alford-Sullivan, coached the middle distance runners on the U.S. Women’s team in the last Olympics. “Everywhere she goes, the program takes a huge leap,” he said. She wants him to run cross country too, he said.

According to Jerome Borchers, Penn State is rebuilding its track program under a new coach after a few down years at the tail-end of 40 years under the previous coach. He sees his son as a magnet for other quality runners. According to Sam Borchers, entering with him in next year’s class will be the number one high school 800-meter runner in the country and the Pennsylvania state mile champion.

He looks forward to competing in the Big Ten Conference, where in some years his fastest time in the mile would have won the conference. By his junior year, he hopes to be competitive on the national level, he said. When asked about lowering his time he said that depends on the competition.

“I’m a racer,” he said. “I have never been very good at gauging how fast I am running. I don’t think I could break 4:20 running by myself.”

Borchers is always quick to deflect attention to his teammates, often referring to the successes of his friends Firestone and Andy Peters. When asked about how he did in his last meet, he was sure to mention that sophomore teammate Alexis Onfroy placed second behind him in the mile with a very good time.

Both Borchers and Firestone are grateful for their Yellow Springs experience, acknowledging not only their teammates, Gudgel, coaches Peters and Dave Johnston, and their parents, but the community as a whole for all the kind words and support.

“I wonder if it would have worked out the same somewhere else,” Borchers said.

As a way to thank the community, Firestone said, he hopes everyone will come to the Bulldog Invitational on Friday, May 4, at 4:30 p.m. at Yellow Springs High School.

Contact: vhervey@ysnews.com