[05/08/02]St. Aloysius’ drive for a state championship is being helped along by a drive of a different sort the one left fielder Walker Hengst makes every day.

Hengst commutes to St. Al every day from Rolling Fork, about 45 minutes north of Vicksburg. He’s made the drive nearly every day for the past four years, and as the Flashes prepare to face Myrtle in the Class 1A finals beginning Thursday at Bazinsky Field, every trip has suddenly been made worthwhile.

“Getting in late and doing schoolwork gets pretty rough,” said Hengst, who maintains a 3.4 GPA. “But it’s worth it. I wouldn’t trade it for the world. Getting a chance to play for a state championship, it’s absolutely wonderful.”

Hengst has come a long way this season in more ways than one. He’s overcome three knee surgeries and an abysmal start to become one of the Flashes’ most productive players, hitting nearly .300 while committing only one error in the outfield this season.

It’s his long drive that makes his long drives possible.

Hengst’s commutes began in 1998, when he started playing summer ball with the Vicksburg Vipers. He rode in with his father, Tommy, a senior project manager for the Corps of Engineers.

When Hengst reached high school, St. Al “A” Club president Charlie Amborn, a good friend of Tommy Hengst’s, convinced the family to transfer Walker from Sharkey-Issaquena Academy to St. Al.

“He wanted to come to school to get a quality education, and I told his dad that St. Al had that. Of course, I noticed his outfield skills, too,” Amborn said with a laugh.

To ease the stress of driving 45 minutes every day and getting home after 10 p.m. on some nights, Amborn also opened his home to Hengst. He’ll occasionally stay there on weeknights during the season, and often visits after school or practice until his father is done with work for the day.

“All I said was he could live with us sometimes. Little did I know it was going to be a full-time deal. But that’s OK,” Amborn joked. “It’s fun having him down there, and he adds a lot of spice to life. I’m glad we could help him out.”

Amborn jokes about little things Hengst does, like leaving lights on, using all the hot water during showers and eating all the food in the house. Both Amborn, whose son Charlie Jr. plays right field and catcher for the Flashes, and Hengst say there’s nothing but respect, though.

“He and my dad are good friends, and if he yells at me, he’ll yell at Charlie for doing the same thing. He treats me just like I was his,” Hengst said. “They’re great people. They’ve always been kind and generous to me, and they’re like my second family.”

Most of the time, Hengst drives home. It’s not always difficult “Living in Rolling Fork, you have to drive 45 miles anywhere to see a McDonald’s,” Hengst said but he is sometimes reminded of the dangers of the trip.

“Since I’ve been down here, I’ve seen five wrecks where people have died,” Hengst said. “It just makes you more aware of how safe you have to be.”

But Hengst’s worst injuries have come once he got to school.

He hurt his knee in the last game of the 2000 football season and had three surgeries over the next six months. The second left him with 57 staples in his leg and limited him to only 16 games in the 2001 baseball season.

“I never really was able to get into the swing of things,” said Hengst, who still managed to hit .300 last season. “Those knee surgeries really killed me after football.”

This year didn’t start off much better. Hengst began the year in a 1-for-23 slump, prompting St. Al coach Joe Graves to have a sit-down with his left fielder.

Hengst said Graves showed confidence in him, and the pep talk worked. Since then, Hengst has hit .447.

“Ever since then, I’ve had two completely different seasons,” Hengst said.

And two different homes. Hengst said his family never really considered moving to Vicksburg because most of the extended family lives in Rolling Fork. So for at least another year, the long morning and late-night drives will continue.

Of course, the sight of a state championship ring resting on his finger as he steers his way into the Delta will make the trip seem a lot shorter.

“They call me The Traitor’. I always get that,” Hengst said with a laugh, referring to his friends and former teammates at SIA. “I miss some of my friends, but as far as academics and athletics, I would not trade it for anything.”