Green Valley’s Rogers gave up baseball to run distances

Green Valley’s Austin Rogers was a baseball player when he started high school two years ago.

But that all changed when he saw his potential in distance running.

“Baseball players, especially here, don’t go to other sports,” Gators cross country coach Blaine Thompson said. “They just go to the next season, which is baseball year-round. He saw where his bread was buttered. He recognized where his ability was best.”

Rogers’ decision to forgo baseball after his freshman year has turned out to be rewarding as he’s turned himself into one of the top runners in the state and is the favorite to win Thursday’s Sunrise Region meet at 1:30 p.m. at Sunset Park. The Sunset Region and small-school races, also 3.1 miles, take place every 40 minutes after in descending order of division.

“I feel like I’ve been very consistent this season,” Rogers said. “I’ve been feeling very good the past few races and I’m starting to recover better after races … Individual-wise, I’m going to go for time. I want to go sub-16:10. Hopefully, I’m up by 30 seconds from the second-place winner.”

Playing at one of the more prestigious baseball schools in town, Rogers asked himself early on what would be more beneficial to his future. He, along with Thompson, saw the potential in running.

At that point, Rogers decided he was going all-in and joined track & field the following spring to participate in the 1,600- and 3,200-meter runs. Now, as a junior, he’s breaking his own personal record in what seems like every race. On Sept. 27, he recorded his best 3.1-mile time of 16:04 at the Falcon Invitational.

“(Track) helped me progress individually and it’s (improved) my mental game as a runner,” Rogers said.

Said Thompson: “He wants to go to college, and he thinks his best chance to go is on a scholarship. His own self-appraisal, his own view of himself, is realistic. Most kids don’t have that because they’re kids. He’s got the talent and he’s got a work ethic to go along with it. That’s doesn’t always combine …

“He’s got a fairly mature outlook and perspective on things coming up. He lives in the moment, but he always has an eye to the future.”

Thompson said Rogers is “good enough to run at a Division I school,” but it will depend on what happens between now and his senior season. For now, Rogers will be looking to improve on his third place finish (17:12.8) in last season’s region meet at Veteran’s Memorial Park.

Thompson is confident it will happen. Rogers has been the top runner all season on what many consider the Sunrise’s top team.

“This is the best distance team we’ve ever had at the school,” said Thompson, who’s in his 12th season at the school. “I’ve been coaching track here since the first year (Green Valley) opened, and this is by far the best distance team we’ve ever had.”

Green Valley’s boys have been region runner-up the last two seasons, including a heartbreaking one-point loss to Coronado last year. The Gators will be looking for their first region title since 2011.

“That was the goal at the beginning of the season,” Thompson said. “To win a region championship and contend for the state championship. We’re still in the same position we were in the beginning of the year. If our kids run the way they’re capable of running, we should win the region.”

Contact reporter Ashton Ferguson at

aferguson@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0430. Follow him on Twitter: @af_ferguson.