Senior Male Athlete of The Year: Troy Walker
Troy Walker was a leader in three sports during his time at B-A.
April 28, 2020
There are plenty of top-notch athletes in the Bellwood-Antis Class of 2020. In fact, three signed to play Division I college sports.
Of the entire senior class, one male athlete stood out no matter what field he was on, and he did all he could to lead his team to victory.
Due to both his stellar performance on the football field and the basketball court, Troy Walker has been named the BluePrint’s senior Male Athlete of the Year.
Through his years at B-A, Walker has been a four-year letter winner for the football team and a three-year letter winner on both the basketball and baseball teams. His fourth letter on the baseball team was assured before the COVID-19 shutdown led to the cancellation of spring sports in PA.
This football season Walker had a total of 533 receiving yards with 29 catches and 4 touchdowns, but he also averaged 13 points per game for the basketball team and was selected to play in the Altoona Mirror All Star game.
“He played a big role in our success these past few years,” said football coach Nick Lovrich. “This year he became a huge weapon as a receiver, making highlight reel catches all season. He also gave us the ability to play multiple defenses because of his versatility, which helped us to be one of the best defenses in the area.”
“I grew up with sports being a huge part of my life. Ever since I was a little kid I would go to my uncle’s games, and go to practices and films with my dad,” said Walker. “Whenever it got time to be in high school, I knew I could make an impact pretty early. I started baseball when I was a freshman and found a starting spot for football when I was a sophomore.
While the life of a tri-athlete is demanding, Walker feels his experience in Bellwood helped him with his growth as a three-sport star.
“I got pretty lucky growing up in Bellwood because all the coaches are great, especially from a young age,” he said. “I’m glad my senior year lived up to what I wanted it to be, but it’s sad we didn’t get to finish baseball. I’m going to miss playing with all the boys. They’re basically my brothers at this point because throughout my years I spent more time with my sports teams that I did at home.”
Walker was also the blanket winner for the football team, and would for sure be the winner for the basketball team, but they have yet to have their banquet because of COVID-19 restrictions. If Walker were to win the blanket award for the basketball team, he would join the list of only a few athletes to ever win the award in two different sports.
Unfortunately, like many other seniors, Walker’s year was cut short due to the terrible circumstances associated with the coronavirus, but we shouldn’t let his remarkable achievements here at B-A go unnoticed.
“It says a lot about his athletic ability that he was able to be a major contributor in three sports,” Coach Lovrich said.
