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© St. Petersburg Times, published November 29, 2001
TAMPA -- Success in running was but one factor in choosing this year's winners of the Dr. Ben Walker award as the county's most valuable cross-country runners. Outstanding academics and leadership qualities helped separate the two winners from the field.
That made it easy to choose East Bay's Lindsey Moffenbier and Berkeley Prep's Rolf Steier. Besides being two of the most successful runners the past four years, Steier and Moffenbier each rank near the top of their classes in academics.
Steier seemed destined for the award since his freshman year, when he finished second at the state meet in 15 minutes, 46 seconds. Steier won the next three state titles, added four track titles and recorded the fastest 3-mile time in the nation (14:26) at the district meet last month.
In addition, Steier carries an unweighted 3.9 grade-point average, is a member of the National Honor Society, scored 1,450 on the SAT and last year received the Columbia University Book Award, presented to the junior who shows potential for success in college in academics, extra-curricular activities and community service.
"It definitely feels good to end the season with an honor like this," said Steier, who finished 11th in last week's Foot Locker Regional Meet in Charlotte, N.C. "There is nothing like ending your senior season on a high note."
Moffenbier also received the Columbia University Book Award last year and is a member of the National Honor Society. She entered her senior year ranked second in her class with a 5.4 weighted GPA (3.92 unweighted) and was forced to skip East Bay's Math Bowl on Wednesday to pick up the Ben Walker award at Berkeley Prep.
Moffenbier finished in the top five at the state cross-country championships all four years, highlighted by a runner-up showing as a freshman, and won the 2-mile track title as a freshman.
She has visited Auburn, but hasn't decided which college she will attend.