By John R. Johnson, The Boston Globe
BRIDGEWATER, Mass. -- It has been quite a month for Middleborough’s Andy Sukeforth. Last week, the Bridgewater State senior finished 30th in a field of 373 runners to earn All-New England honors at the NCAA Division 3 New England Cross-Country Championships at Williams College. He completed the 5-mile course in 26 minutes, 14.2 seconds.
His performance earned Sukeforth a trip to the NCAA Division 3 national championship this past Saturday in Mason, Ohio. Earlier this month, the 22-year-old political science major was named Runner of the Year in the Massachusetts State College Athletic Conference after his first-place finish at the MASCAC/New England Alliance men’s championships, covering the course in 26:30.23.
As a senior at Middleborough High, he won the 1,000 meters at the MIAA Division 3 indoor track state meet, and owns school records in the indoor mile and the 1,000, as well as the outdoor 800 meters.
Q. How did it feel to earn All-New England honors and receive an invite to the nationals?
A. It was a good feeling to do well on Saturday, but I didn’t know if I would get into nationals until Sunday afternoon, because I was right on the borderline of maybe missing out. So I was kind of nervous. I found out Sunday afternoon when coach called me.
Q. How do you prepare for such an important race?
A. You just can’t think about too much during the race. I think all of the mental preparation is done during the season before the race. So when the race comes you just shut everything out and just race as hard as you can. Most of the preparation happens during the season.
Q. What is your prerace ritual?
A. I usually don’t talk that much before a race. I try to stay as focused as possible. I’ve been doing the same warm-up routine since high school. I usually jog 20 minutes really slow, and then I do the same stretching routine. I listen to mellow music to calm any nerves.
Q. How did you get into running?
A. My dad got me into running when I was a freshman at high school. I initially did it to get in shape for baseball, but I eventually liked it so much I quit baseball to run track. I like having one common goal with my teammates, and that you get out what you put into it. I like to see the results of my training.
Q. Is there a runner you look up to?
A. My teammate at Bridgewater from two years ago [Stephen Wahome] made nationals, and he was the hardest worker I’ve ever seen in my life when it comes to running. I always try to emulate him and to focus like he used to. He was a smart racer and a really hard worker, so I try to do all the same things he did.
Q. How do you explain your success this season and competing in the nationals?
A. I went to the New England meet two years ago but I didn’t do that well. This time I was in better shape because I’ve trained more. I’m usually more of a track guy instead of cross-country, but I’ve trained a lot more over longer distances the last two years. That definitely helped.
Q. Do you plan to stay involved with running after college?
A. I think I will always try to run competitively, as long as I continue to get better. I’d like to get into coaching eventually.