NORTH CHARLESTON – Unlike many runners, Drew Buehring loves hills. The bigger the hill, the better the Fort Dorchester senior seems to perform.
Drew ranks the course at the CiCi Pizza Sandhills Invitational as his favorite in cross country, and that’s where he recently set a personal record in the 5,000-meters, breaking the 16-minute barrier by four seconds.
That first-place finish earned Drew the Go-Green Timing and On On Tri Boys High School Runner of the Week. The girls Runner of the Week was Airport’s Megan Stahlberger, who finished first at both the Highlander Invitational (18:45) and the Sandhills event (18:31).
For Megan it was her second scrunners.com Runner of the Week honor this season.
"For me, being runner of the week is a honor and I am happy to be it again," said Stahlberger. "I know that there are many runners that deserve this too, so it is neat to be chosen out of all of them. My past two wins, I feel, put me in a good position going into the last three meets. The last three, though, are the ones that many times other runners improve greatly so I am looking forward to racing them."
Drew finished six seconds ahead of Ridge View sophomore Michael Lantz at the Sandhills Invitational. He said he enjoys the Columbia course primarily because of the "one large hill."
"On that hill you truly get the experience of what long-distance running is about, and you can see the dedication and the hard work the runners have, or haven't, put into their training," Drew said.
His coach, Thane Williams, said Drew’s success in cross-country comes from his "hard work and dedication to improvement.
"I have been coaching Drew for three years both in cross country and track. He has improved his time each year," Williams said.
"Drew is dedicated, receptive to instruction, and supportive of his teammates," Williams said. "He is a good leader and a good student. He helps to encourage younger runners and is a great example to each of them."
Drew said he started running competitively during his freshman year of high school, and credits his love of the sport to his late father.
"I ran with my father when I was a young child, as well as with my brother," Drew said.
He said he enjoys the "competitiveness of the sport as well as the feeling of accomplishment that comes from the numerous miles and hours that are put into it."
Drew also competes in track and field during the spring at Fort Dorchester, and he said he would carry that effort into college. Though he hasn’t made a decision yet, Drew said he is considering The Citadel, Tennessee and Georgia.
He said he hopes to improve on his performance at Sandhills in the meets leading up to State, and he carries a personal motivation to get there.
"I’m motivated to run cross country by the memory of my father and the hope to honor him through it," Drew said.
