EAST-WEST ALL-STAR GAME

BEES BASCHKO STARTS, SHINES FOR WEST

By Dom DiPasqua/Staff Writer

Friday night, June 12, 2015

BEREA – At 6-5, 290-pounds and wearing a red, white and blue bandana, size and stature-wise Evan Baschko was the biggest player on the West sideline. And that was before the game. He loomed even larger after it began.

Baschko’s name would be called many times throughout the long and sometimes soggy night even though the West fell to the East, 34-22, in the 43rd Annual East-West High School All-Star Scholastic Football Game here at Finnie Stadium on the campus of Baldwin-Wallace University.

A year ago Baschko, a recently graduated senior at Brecksville-Broadview Heights High School, decided to put aside his tuba and join the football team. He said so long to the Bees marching band and hello to a bunch of new teammates. Guys that he had known for years. Guys that he was friends with in school. Guys with whom he would eventually run out onto the football field with every Friday night to lay it all on the line for the red and gold.

When Baschko became one of those guys it opened up a whole new world for the 3.6 GPA student who will play football at John Carroll University.

“Going back a year ago I couldn’t even imagine this. This is awesome. This is absolutely a dream come true,” Baschko said just prior to this evenings opening kick off. “From the first day of camp everyone has been pulling for me – all these guys,” Baschko said of his West teammates. “They are right there for me and it’s just a great experience being here with them. These are the best players in Cuyahoga County.”

Right off the bat Baschko registered two tackles for a loss and was in on the chase, along with Holy Names Mike Sabol, who tackled an East back in the south end zone for a 2-0 West lead on the final play of the first quarter.

When the West fumbled at the in-bound one it became its defenses’ mission to create a silver lining from a missed opportunity. The East had its back to the wall and the 12-minute deadlock came to an end.

“Our goal was to not even let them breathe. Get right in there and smother them to the ground,” Baschko said of the safety.

With the benefit of receiving a free kick the Wests’ offense got on track. Quarterback Christian Klink (Holy Name) found hometown speedster Justin Harris (Berea-Midpark) for a 48-yard gain on a bubble screen. And then Klink went long ball with a 36-yard scoring pass to Nick Medaglia (Padua Franciscan). The point after kick was wide left but the West had staked an 8-0 lead with all its points coming in a 1:15 defensive and offensive flurry.

A Wild Second Quarter

Six minutes later Jordan Leverette (John Adams) hauled in a 41-yard pass and Shawn Hoffman (Euclid) added the point-after narrowing the Wests’ lead to 8-7.

The East took its first lead on a 26-yard scoring play from Stephen Borgman (Orange) to Moses Marshall (Brush). That strike and Hoffman’s kick gave them a 14-8 advantage with 2:56 to play in the half.

The West returned the favor with a little razzle-dazzle. Klink passed left side to Nick Hoerig (Strongsville) who lofted a rainbow to a wide open 6-7 Rex Sunhara (Bay) in the end zone. Corey Griffith (St. Ignatius) converted the kick and the West led, 15-14, with 1:43 left before halftime.

And then lightning struck. And not the kind you would expect from the gray laden sky. Robert Drake (Lutheran East) fielded the ensuing kick off at his two. He dashed up the middle of the field, waited for his blocks to form, and throttled into another gear on his way to a 98-yard return which gave the East a 21-15 lead with 1:23 remaining in the half.

It got worse. Rajon Griffin (John Hay) intercepted a West pass on its first play from scrimmage. And Max Balasz (Beachwood) scampered around the right corner for a 6-yard touchdown. Hoffman’s kick gave the East a 28-15 lead at the break that they would not look back on.

The message from the West coaching staff at halftime was the obvious. “We’ve got to play better. They are jawing at us. We have to play above them,” Basckho said upon emerging from the locker room. “We have to stay within ourselves. Keep our heads, go out and play our game.”

Late in the third quarter the threatening skies finally let lose and each team would score another touchdown before the game and Baschko’s high school career came to an end.

Sideline Squib Kicks

Throughout the contest veteran BBHHS head coach Jason Black marveled at Baschko’s performance. “Evan’s progress, starting at this time last year to where we are at right now, I mean he made two big negative yardage plays for the West in the first series of the game,” Black said. “He’s playing tough out there. He looks the part. He looks like he belongs. So we are very happy for Evan to be able to do that.”

Black was joined on the West sideline by his defensive coordinator John Shirilla and assistant Jason Simonetti. The Bees returning senior defensive back and jack-of-all trades Danny Shirilla, a pretty good bet to play in this game next year, was proud of what Baschko, his teammate for 11 games in 2014, was able to accomplish in such a short time on the football field. “Evan has come a really long way. It shows how smart and dedicated he is to pick-up the game in only one year. And he’s got lot of football left in him,” Danny Shirilla said.

Perhaps the best thing about this improbable ‘marching band dude becomes football star’ story is that Baschko loves to play the game. He improved week-after-week during his one and only campaign, and this evening he was a better football player than he was in early November when he earned all-league honors.

The fact that he grew an inch and added 15 pounds of muscle in the last seven months bodes well for him at the next level. “Right now John Carroll has me at D-line. I don’t know if it is going to be a five or a three, but we’ll find out more when I get there,” Baschko said.

Does that sound like a guy who likes to play the tuba?

Sitting up in the marching band section Baschko had a dream. It was to run out of the tunnel and onto the field of play, listening to the BBHHS fight song through the ear holes in his red helmet and not tapping out its notes on his horn. “My best memories of playing football in high school was either the first time or on Senior Night running out of the Bee,” said Baschko when asked to recap the last 12 months. “Those were definitely the best moments.”

 

More On Baschko

Just about a year ago, at a 7-on-7 passing scrimmage here at B-W, Coach Black said he had someone he wanted me to meet. Evan Baschko, one of the biggest kids on the field, was standing with the linemen near the north goal post on Tressel Field. Assistant coach Mike Glaser was putting the big guys through their paces while the headline-makers were running routes in shorts and helmets. Who is that guy? The scribe asked the Bees head coach. “Evan was in the marching band. He wants to try football. Talk to him,” Coach Black said.

Now I’m no Pulitzer prize-winning journalist but I know a good story when I hear one. The rest is history. The Evan Baschko story is one of the most intriguing and heart-warming stories I have come across in over a quarter century of covering high school football.

On the surface it has multiple facets and behind-the-scenes probably many more than I am aware of. But I had not known of a young man who had never played football before go from seeing if he liked the game to loving it. To go from tuba player to all star. That is the intrigue.

The heart-warming part is that Evan Baschko was the same high-quality young man this evening that I met a year ago on this very field. He is mature, respectful, friendly and as sincere as the day is long. And that is why I became a fan.

 

All Star Game Notes:

The West head coach was Patrick Patton, Holy Name’s defensive coordinator. The East was coached by Pete Zappas, offensive coordinator at University School. BBHHS basketball coach Steve Mehalik and Jon Carroll from Winning Edge Fundraising are generous supporters of the annual clash. Game Chairman Larry Keller, one of the all-time gents involved with area high school football, is a guy you can always count on for lively sideline banter. Both teams wore uniforms donated by the Cleveland Browns. The West wore white jerseys and chocolate pants. The east the opposite. Baschko wore number 19. The announced attendance was 1,500. Two thirds of those football-starved patrons sat in the West stands.

In addition to Baschko other Southwestern Conference players representing the West were: Justin Harris (Berea-Midpark), Chad Bata (Westlake), Kenny Sladick (Berea-Midpark), Nick Storc (Olmsted Falls) and Ryan Sosic (Olmsted Falls). Harris is a track standout and Sosic was a force for the Bulldogs on the basketball court.

Former Bee players Jay Schott and Kevin Reynolds, a pair of classy alumni, stopped by before the game to say hello. Brecksville seniors, “The Special K’s”; Kendall Brown, Katie Boehlefeld and Kaylee Vadini made sure to grab a Tootsie Pop. The trio was off to Swenson’s for a post game bite to eat – rain or not. Three bigger sports fans you will not meet. It was good to see basketball players Keri Gasper (Olmsted Falls) and Savanajh Black (Lakewood). Gasper is off to Evansville next week where she will play her college ball.

Olmsted Falls quarterback Nick Fritz, who underwent surgery to repair a dislocated knee cap this spring, is headed to Blufton where he will play basketball.

Work has begun at Community Stadium. The Bee Hive’s old artificial surface has been removed. There is a large homemade sign hanging on the fence at the ballparks entrance which says ‘field closed until July 24th’.

Evan Baschko was the biggest guy on the stage last Saturday afternoon at the BBHHS Class of 2015’s commencement ceremony at the State Theater where he received his sheepskin. Baschko will major in accounting at JCU.

This evening marked at least the 10th consecutive June that a Bees football player has appeared in the East-West game.

 

QUOTE OF THE NIGHT:

“Now that this game is here you KNOW it’s finally football season.” – Bees offensive coordinator John Shirilla.

 

NEXT UP:

Brecksville will return to Baldwin-Wallace for a 7-on-7 passing scrimmage on Monday, June 22 from 6:00 – 8:30 pm.

 

See You At The Bee Hive!

To contact: Ddipa67834@aol.com.

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