By Rich Palzewic
Sports Editor
Andrew Abfall is a senior at Bay Port High School who runs cross country and track.
Abfall would like to attend Ohio State because both of his parents did, but Purdue and Minnesota are also options. He would like to study mechanical engineering and probably won’t end up running competitively in college.
In his spare time, he likes to play ultimate frisbee, go boating, snowboard and is really into cars.
Name: Andrew Abfall
Nickname: Drew
School: Bay Port
Sports: cross country, track
Parents: Rob and Denise
Twitter: @AbfallDrew
Do you have any siblings?
“I have two older brothers – one named Caleb who is 24 and the other is Zach, who is 22.”
Do you come from a sports family?
“Yes. Caleb did cross country and track as well. He currently holds the 800, mile and 2-mile records here at Bay Port. Zach plays baseball at the University of Illinois in Springfield and played at Bay Port. My dad did track and I think played football and my mom did track and played basketball.”
Have you always just done the running sports while at Bay Port, or did you ever try any others?
“I played baseball and basketball when I was younger, but gave them up before I entered high school.”
How about a high-school sport you wish you would have done or at least tried?
“I think I would have loved to continue with baseball, but it obviously conflicts with track. Soccer would have been fun, too. I played that when I was younger as well.”
What is your earliest running memory?
“I started running in the fourth grade at the elementary school I went to in the running club. I got into cross country once I went to Lineville. I remember how hard my first 3-mile run was, but I also knew I liked it.”
What’s the furthest distance you’ve run in a day or at a time?
“I’ve gone 12 miles in one run – that’s the most.”
How many miles would you put in during a week?
“Right now about 42, but by the first week of the cross-country season it’ll be about 50.”
Last year was a pretty special year with making it to the state cross-country meet in Wisconsin Rapids!
“I believe the last time we had made it to state as a team was six years ago when my brother Caleb was a senior, so it was pretty special. Even before getting to state, winning the conference meet over Preble when we tied with them (but won the tiebreaker) and then beating them again at sectionals was pretty special. Those are definitely some of my most memorable moments.”
Do you have any ambitious goals for a marathon someday?
“I’ll see where running takes me, but I’d definitely like to someday.”
What is something about you most people wouldn’t know?
“I was born in Cincinnati, Ohio, and then moved to Illinois. We didn’t move to Green Bay until 2011 when I was in the fourth grade – most people probably don’t realize that.”
What’s on your music playlist?
“It really varies, but right now hip-hop and rap are popular. I look for more of the unknown artists. I don’t listen to country or heavy metal.”
What three words best describe you?
“Open-minded, caring, athletic.”
Besides Wisconsin, what would be your favorite state and why?
“Probably Colorado, because they get so much snow. I love the mountains and would like to snowboard out there.”
On Sunday mornings, you can usually find me doing what?
“Sundays are usually my day off from running, but probably sleeping in or eating breakfast with my family.”
What would your dream job be?
“Racing rally cars – I can watch hours of videos of races. I know it’s a little unrealistic and hard to achieve, but it would be a dream job.”
What would be your least favorite household chore?
“Cleaning the bathroom – it’s very tedious.”
Tent or camper?
“Tent.”
Chocolate or vanilla?
“Chocolate.”
Read the book or watch the movie?
“Watch the movie.”
Do the dishes or vacuum?
“Vacuum.”
Dogs or cats?
“Dogs.”
Favorites
Athlete: Olympic steeplechase runner Evan Jager
Board game: Monopoly
Phone app: Spotify
Food: macaroni and cheese
Color: blue
Notes: Suggestions for the senior spotlight can be submitted to Rich via email ([email protected]) or via Twitter (@richpalzewic). All spotlights can be found online at thepress.media. Check out last week’s spotlight on Bay Port’s Courtney Koeberl.