Dutch Fork community mourns loss of alum who was shot to death in Ohio

The Dutch Fork High School community is mourning the loss of a standout former football player.

Former Dutch Fork receiver Gage Zirke was shot and killed in Akron, Ohio on Sunday, that city’s police department confirmed. Zirke was 20 years old.

“There are few kids that have touched my heart like Gage Zirke. ... His bright smiles and amazing talent .. his love for fun… hardly anyone I have seen could cut on a dime like that, and turn a 5 yard catch into 30… my heart is broken … I adore you .. Rest In Peace my friend,” Pam Olenchuk posted on Twitter on Monday.

Olenchuk is the mom of former Dutch Fork quarterback Ty Olenchuk, and the two were teammates with the Silver Foxes.

According to the Akron Police Department, officers responded to a shooting at 6:35 p.m. Sunday and found a vehicle crashed into a tree. Zirke was found in the front seat with an apparent gunshot wound and was pronounced dead at the scene.

According to police, multiple shots were fired at Zirke’s car as he traveled down the road. Officers found several bullet holes in the driver’s side of the vehicle, they said. No arrests had been made as of Monday afternoon.

Zirke was a big contributor for Dutch Fork’s 2018 state football championship team. He had 79 catches for 1,684 yards and 15 touchdowns during the season and was selected to play in the North-South All-Star game.

Zirke set a school-best single-game receiving yardage mark against Northwestern that season when he had 16 catches for 281 yards. He broke Jordan Berry’s mark of 245 yards and was one catch away from Berry’s school record of 17 catches in one game.

In the 2018 state championship game against TL Hanna, Zirke had five catches for 180 yards and a touchdown.

“i love you 4.. RIP ... watch over us kid,” former Dutch Fork athlete and current Hampton University guard Deuce Dean posted to Twitter on Monday.

Zirke’s mom, Lucrecia Tolbert-Rogers, told the Akron Beacon Journal that they both moved to Akron two years ago. Tolbert-Rogers said her son had his own apartment and had a full-time job with a pest control company.

“I don’t care how angry someone is, it is never OK to take someone’s life,” Tolbert-Rogers told the Akron Beacon Journal. “This gun violence needs to stop.”

Anyone with information is encouraged to call the Akron Police Department Detective Bureau at (330) 375-2490 or (330) 375-2Tip.