St. Joseph, Minn. – At any women’s cross country practice at the College of Saint Benedict, it wouldn’t take someone long to notice that three of the runners look strikingly similar. However, it would be even easier to notice the three Torchia sisters on the days they all unknowingly show up to practice wearing the exact same clothes.
“I just feel so connected with them,” said Katy Torchia, a CSB senior and the oldest. “There have been times where we show up to practice wearing the exact same thing – without even planning it."
Who knew fashion sense was genetic?
However, it isn’t just their sixth sense for dressing alike at workouts – or the fact they all independently used that example to describe their bond – that reveals the closeness between the sisters. And that closeness has only been enhanced by their dual role as teammates.
“This isn’t the same as just going to the same college,” said Sarah Torchia, the youngest and a true freshman. “We experience the victories and losses together which ultimately brings anyone closer. I find another level of support from them entirely because they’re more than teammates.”
And likewise, they can be better teammates because they’re sisters.
“There are so many factors that go into the performance of a long distance runner,” Sarah said, “many of them mental. We know what’s going on with each other’s lives, so we can be there to talk, or to say, ‘Hey, get with it,’ when the outcome of the race is in question.”
“I’d say (the best part is) the daily camaraderie, being able to compete together and having two people who know me better than most to support me,” added Katy.
‘They each bring unique gifts to the team’
The similarities between the three sisters – Katy, sophomore Kelsey Torchia, and Sarah – are evident even beyond their college and sport of choice. But after a closer look, they have some very noticeable differences that are seemingly dictated by their roles in their sibling relationship. Robin Balder-Lanoue is the trio’s head coach at Saint Ben’s, and she was quick to point out the traits exclusive to each sister.
“The three of them have an incredible value system and are very driven, yet they each bring unique gifts to the team,” Balder-Lanoue said. “Katy is the organized caretaker and things need to happen now. Kelsey is very artistic and loves to stop and smell the roses. Sarah is a social ball of energy.”
It turns out the coach is in-tune with her runners. Her assessment receives a pretty strong endorsement from each girl’s chosen major. Katy, the “organized caretaker,” is finishing up her degree in nursing. “Very artistic” Kelsey who “loves to stop and smell the roses” is majoring in environmental studies with a minor in art, and Sarah, the “social ball of energy” in her first year, is undecided.
Katy agreed with her role in the triumvirate. Being the oldest has led to some natural leadership, and an inherent ability to nurture. However, she’s tried to resist that urge since Balder-Lanoue decided her team would be better off with more Torchias, and started recruiting Kelsey and Sarah.
“As the oldest, it’s really tempting for me to feel responsible for my sisters and take on the ‘motherly’ role,” Katy said. “It’s been a good lesson for me to learn – how to let them make the mistakes and go through the tough stuff themselves. I always have to remind myself to let them experience everything I did.”
And Katy has experienced a lot. In addition to her athletic accomplishments with the Blazers’ cross country and track and field teams, she was named the school’s 2010 Scholar-Athlete-of-the-Year for her prowess in the classroom, which includes a perfect 4.0 grade point average. However, rather than feel pressure to live up to Katy’s accomplishments, the opportunity to attend college together and run side-by-side was just too great to pass up for her younger siblings.
The three briefly ran together for a season at Rochester Lourdes High School, where they all excelled at cross country, track and field and Nordic skiing. All three were in the varsity cross country lineup for one meet together during Katy’s senior year, and that meet happened to be the 2006 MSHSL State Cross Country Championships. That experience is part of what brought them back together four years later at Saint Ben’s. As the oldest, Katy tried to stay out of the recruiting process and let her sisters decide what college would be best for them, but she’s glad they ultimately made the same choice as her.
“I definitely held back as much as I could on the ‘recruiting’ part,” Katy said. “I wanted them to have the same experience and same freedom as I did. It was only after they confirmed their registration that I gave them their CSB Blazer bags as a graduation gift.”
While Katy was finding the appropriate balance for her role as the oldest, Kelsey has enjoyed her spot in the middle. She gets to play both older and younger sister to her siblings, and that perspective helps her understand each sister’s position. However, even though she isn’t the youngest, she still finds herself admiring both Katy and Sarah.
“Being the middle child had given me a unique perspective on my family and has allowed me to grow closer to both my sisters,” Kelsey said. “I look up to both Katy and Sarah as sources of strength and inspiration and we all help to keep each other on track. We are each our own individuals who bring that part of who we are to the team.”
With her college choice in front of her and two older sisters already running at St. Ben’s, Sarah said she considered heading off in a different direction. However, the pull of her family ties were ultimately too strong, and she realized shortly after moving to campus she made the right decision.
“Both my sisters made it clear they would support me wherever I chose to go to school,” Sarah said. “I never really considered myself the younger sister who just followed her older ones, but that kind of support was so appealing that I wanted to experience being on the same team first-hand, rather than just having them cheering for me (somewhere else).
“It’s so comforting (being on the same team). This fall was more of a transition than I could have imagined, so in that sense, as a first-year, I cannot even say how thankful I am.”
‘A stronger sense of cohesion’
Despite their unique personality differences, the Torchia sisters share a deep love for cross country, which is a sport that almost necessitates a love/hate relationship. However, it’s clear the sisters share the “love” portion and help each other through the “hate” to maximize their immense potential. Especially now that they’re racing at the collegiate level, they’ve leaned on each other even more than during their days at Lourdes.
“Being on the same team at the college level is just what it is – a different level – of training, competing and racing,” Kelsey said. “It is a challenging, but extremely rewarding experience that I am so happy to share with my sisters.”
“The collegiate level is definitely more competitive, and there’s so much more to balance,” Katy added. “Are we competitive with each other? Yes, but it’s a healthy competition – something that brings out the best in each of us. I can honestly say that I’ve never been anything but proud of my sisters, and I hope they continue to beat me in races; it will fuel my own fire even more.”
“The ‘negative’ would be that they keep me accountable for training,” Sarah joked. “Being on a team in general keeps you accountable because you really don’t want to let everyone down by not getting your miles in or finishing lifting that day, but because it’s only natural to keep tabs on your sisters, sometimes they might know what might be missing more than I do.”
While each girl has her own individual personality and role on the Blazers’ team, it’s evident that their bond as sisters has made an impact on the team as well.
“I consider us more of a unit than siblings,” Sarah said. “It’s not the same as just having one sister on the team, because we form our own sub-team too, while bringing our individual strengths together.”
Balder-Lanoue discussed all the positive things the Torchia sisters bring to her team. She not only values the girls’ passion and values, but also the sense of closeness they’ve injected into the Blazers’ squad.
“They truly bring a stronger sense of cohesion to the team,” Balder-Lanoue said. “I believe that you will see the same positive traits and challenges you would see in being part of a family. All three of them are incredibly goal-oriented and driven to succeed. These are the same traits they bring to the classroom and everything they do.”
Kelsey agreed.
“Together, we are three sisters, brought together by a love for a sport and one another, shared experiences and a team that has truly redefined the meaning of ‘sister.’ ”
‘A top-notch family’
All three sisters credit their parents – Michael and Patricia Torchia – for instilling an incredible sense of family in them from an early age. All three routinely refer to the others as “best friends.” Balder-Lanoue said her top highlight of recruiting and coaching the three girls has been, “the chance to meet and work with a top-notch family.”
Katy said she has come to realize that all families aren’t necessarily as close as hers, and she has really come to appreciate the upbringing her and her sisters received as the three continue their relationships in their first ventures away from home.
“I am so blessed to count my sisters among my best friends – I know that doesn’t always happen,” Katy said. “I definitely give credit to my parents for instilling us with the value of our family time. We’re together as much as we can be … the ‘Torchia Clan,’ as they call it!”
“They are honestly just my best friends, not even sisters,” Sarah added. “We try to make the most of the little moments we see each other in between class or passing.”
In addition to running, the sisters said they all try to connect with one another at least once a day. They enjoy doing a number of different things together in between the demands of being a college athlete, such as going to the lake, shopping, meals, movies and phone conversations that often go longer than anticipated.
However, despite their closer-than-close relationship and their efforts to enjoy their college experience at Saint Benedict together, the Torchia sisters have found their bond has forced them to learn there is one college necessity they’re better off doing alone.
“We try to avoid study sessions together at the library,” Katy said. “Productivity goes way down if we’re all together!”
Fortunately for the Blazer’s women’s cross country team, that’s about the only thing the Katy, Kelsey and Sarah Torchia can’t accomplish as sisters … or teammates.