The Etrain 11: Bumgarner vs. Skolnekovich

Quaker Valley has been a powerhouse in WPIAL small schools. They’ve had team state championships in cross country and on the track in the 4x800. They’ve had individual state champions like LJ Westwood and Omar Hyjek. But perhaps none of their athletes have ever been more talented than Zach Skolnekovich, who hangs up his spikes without a state gold to his resume.

In the fall of 2013, Skolnekovich announced that he would be a force to be reckoned with state wide. He placed 2^nd in the WPIAL during cross country and doubled down on that mark with a 12^th place finish at the state championship. He was the top freshman in the state by 14 seconds and top within his classification by almost a minute. Just a year later, Skolnekovich was the WPIAL champion as a sophomore. Once again Zach was first in his class at the AA state championship and the young stand out was even gaining buzz as a sleeper for the state championship that very season.

While Skolnekovich was turning heads and breaking records, another runner from Waynesburg Central was finding his way on the trails. Ben Bumgarner finished his freshman season with a time of 20:46 at the WPIAL championships. He was almost four minutes behind Zach at that point. But Bumgarner quickly gathered steam, running 4:48 in the spring of 2014 and qualifying for the WPIAL championships in track. Then, a year later, he punched his first ticket to a state championship with a 4:28 performance.

The 2015 outdoor state championship marked the first time that Skolnekovich and Bumgarner both raced at the state championship. However, Skolnekovich competed in the 3200, placing 12^th in a PR of 9:40. A day earlier, Bumgarner had finished 11^th in his 1600 prelim, missing his own chance at a medal.

Being a pair of talented classmates within the same district, I’d imagine the two probably knew of each other. Over the summer before their junior seasons, they likely both made big goals for themselves. For Skolnekovich, he was hoping to take the next step and place in the top 10 at states for the first time. For Bumgarner, he was still trying to get on the podium for the first time.

At the 2015 XC WPIAL Championships, the pair both took an important first step toward those goals. Skolnekovich won the WPIAL title for a second straight season, but this time he was utterly dominant. Skolnekovich ran 16:11 to win by 42 seconds, the fastest time of any of the three classifications. Bumgarner didn’t cross the finish until 72 seconds after Zach, but all the same he punched his first ticket to the fall state championships, hoping for a bounce back performance.

At states, both runners exceeded expectations. Skolnekovich was 2^nd behind only defending state champ and all-time great, Dominic Hockenbury. He also broke 16 minutes on the incredibly difficult Hershey course. Meanwhile, Bumgarner was 7^th at states, the same finish he had at WPIALs. When the dust settled, Bumgarner and Skolnekovich were distinguished as the top 2 returners from the meet. As expected, Skolnekovich was first in his class at the state meet for a third straight year, but now Bumgarner was within striking distance. On the outdoor oval, unsurprisingly, the boys were the top returners once more. It set up a potentially thrilling senior season.

From two very different paths, Ben and Zach had reached their final year in high school. They had already accomplished a great deal, but that state gold hanging just outside their reach pushed them to be even better. It’s hard to say how great of rivals this pair was, but coming from the same district, guaranteeing they would race multiple times a year, had to make the pair very familiar with one another.

There are tons of other talented runners in AA, but in the 2016-2017 school year, things quickly became all about Skolnekovich and Bumgarner. The two didn’t race head to head for a while and entered the WPIAL championship ready to test one another. Skolnekovich was the two time defending champion, but Bumgarner had shown flashes of potential to knock him off. After a somewhat tactical start, there was a group of five runners in the lead pack at 2 Miles. Then, the pace cranked up a notch. Over the course of just over a mile, the Skolnekovich-Bumgarner duo gapped the rest of the field by over 30 seconds. Zach took down a third straight title with a 16:15 mark, edging out Bumgarner’s 16:18.

To this point, Skolnekovich had owned Bumgarner in head to head competition. He had unbelievable closing speed and unbelievable pedigree. But nothing is ever given, it is only earned. After years of being the top dog, Skolnekovich entered the state championship with a ton of pressure and had to face a man who had proven himself on the hills before.

With the lights brightest, Bumgarner put the pressure on early and never looked back at states. He was in the lead back at 4:50 through the first mile, the fastest opening clip of any of the three races. He got the two mile in first and continued to pound from there. By the time he hit the final hill, there was no doubt and Bumgarner pushed his way to the line in 16:01, posting a 12 second margin of victory. It was a statement victory and a coveted state gold.

For Skolnekovich, after years at the top, it had to be disappointing. He had wanted that state title and, having beaten Bumgarner in the past, he knew he could have beaten him on a different day. I thought Zach’s spirit would be broken and his season would be all but over, even though he mentioned in his post-race interview that he was planning to do the Footlocker Regional Meet. It was one last Bumgarner-Skolnekovich match up on the cross country trials.

Only now, the pressure was off for Zach. Running with a new sense of freedom and a thirst for vengeance, Skolnekovich threw down a crazy final mile and sprinted his way into the top 10 at the regional championships, punching a ticket to Footlocker Nationals in San Diego. He had an excellent race out west, finished as PA’s #2 runner ahead of Sam Affolder and Nate Henderson, trailing only all-time great Noah Affolder. In the end, Bumgarner got the state title, but Skolnekovich had a lot to still be proud of. And the debate restarted about who win outdoors in their rematch at 3200.

I thought Skolnekovich would be better suited for the track. He had great closing speed and his PRs were more impressive than Bumgarner from a year earlier. But that was, obviously, a year earlier. Ben made it clear he wasn’t messing around from the jump, rolling through the indoor season and clocking a sub 9:20 mark at 3200, even with Zach’s personal best. If not for a fall at the indoor state championship, he might have been in the mix for a state title there. Just like in cross, he had turned things up a notch and was ready for the challenge.

But it quickly became apparent that Skolnekovich had turned it up a notch as well. Zach clocked an early season sub 9:20 performance and then unleashed a bombshell at the Baldwin Invitational. He stormed away from a stacked field that included Bumgarner and future state champion Tristan Forsythe in the mile to win in 4:14.00. Then he doubled back and easily bested a loaded field in the 3200 with a 9:17.77.

The two matched up twice at the WPIAL championships with much anticipation around their battle. Once again, Ben Bumgarner showed signs at the District meet that could mean he would take the state title. Bumgarner outsprinted Skolnekovich for the silver in the 1600 with a new PR. Although Skolnekovich ran away with the 3200 title, Bumgarner was able to coast through to a state qualifying mark, positioning him with fresh legs for the next week’s state championship.

In the first boy’s final of the day, Bumgarner and Skolnekovich took the track together for the last time. Just like in XC, this pair had asserted themselves as the clear 1-2 punch that everyone was focused on. And just like in XC, they quickly backed up that assertion. It was odd watching these two race against one another. Despite all the close match ups and the clear natural opposition they would have for one another, it was odd to see the pair almost trading off laps to start. Despite the fact that they wanted that state title, the small schoolers also wanted to put on a show with a fast time.

The second half of the race, Bumgarner took over. Just as he had during XC, he put his foot on the gas and forced his opponent out of his comfort zone. It worked to perfection as the senior rolled to a new PR of 9:10.58, sealing a state title in his final race. For Skolnekovich, he was left holding the silver once more.

But unlike Ben, Skolnekovich wasn’t finished. After a hard run in the 3200 where he nearly PRed, Zach tried the incredibly difficult 3200-1600 double. In the shorter race, he was facing a load field of fresher runners. In one of the deepest AA races ever, Skolnekovich placed 5^th in a time of 4:18. It’s a double that went someone under the radar amidst all the other amazing performances, but if it wasn’t for the herculean efforts of Sam Affolder, this may have been the best double of the meet.

It’s interesting to consider the legacies of these two runners and rivals. Housed in the same district, they both accomplished so much, but were limited by the accomplishments of the other. Bumgarner finished without a WPIAL title, but he left with two state golds. He made it his mission to win the state meet. He learned from every race, he carefully planned his strategy and focused his peak on the biggest stage. As a result, he leaves Waynesburg as a truly clutch performer.

Skolnekovich, on the other hand, leaves without a state gold to his name. But he does have a total of 7 state medals, including four silvers. In four years, Skolnekovich qualified for the state championship in the fall and spring every single year. And he placed in the top 12 at every single state meet. Feel free to try and find a runner who has done that. You’ll be looking for a while. And sure, you can give me the AA talk, but when he face the big boys at Footlocker, he acquitted himself pretty well.

There’s lots of different ways to leave your mark on this sport. Both of these great runners took different roads, but ended up in an amazing position as all-timers. And neither gets to their peak without the other. Zach set everything in motion. From his first state meet, he set the bar very high and gave Bumgarner something to chase. Then, Bumgarner knocked him off and that gave Zach the extra motivation he needed to push himself to a height that otherwise wouldn’t have been possible.

Each of these runners have left a lasting legacy on Pennsylvania. But the greatest impact they had may have been on each other.