Menu
FEATURED ATHLETE OF THE WEEK: Abby Spencer, North Putnam
Abby Spencer competes in soccer, swimming and track and field at North Putnam. She was also a finalist for the Putnam County Lilly Endowment Community Scholar award and is in the running to be the class valedictorian this year.
———
Banner Graphic: How do you manage to do so well in school while playing three sports?
Abby Spencer: “You just have to prioritize. I get all my school work done first, then I spend the time doing what I love to do when I’m done — work on my sports. Any free time I have I put toward that.”
BG: You set a school record in the 500 freestyle as a freshman and helped set a school record in the 400 freestyle relay last year. How long have you been swimming?
AS: “I started when the summer of my fifth grade year. I love to swim. Just the physical act of swimming. I love the relationships made through being on the team, and I have also made a lot of new friends. My favorite event is the 500 freestyle [10 down-and-backs in our pool]. My coaches have always trained me for that event, and have taught me how to do it well. I run distance in track, and I play midfield in soccer.”
BG: How highly ranked are you in your class academically?
AS: “I have a 4.1 GPA right now [with weighted grades]. I’m in the running for valedictorian, but I have to keep getting good grades.”
BG: What are your post-high school plans?
AS: “I want to go to Butler University and major in pre-medicine to be a pediatrician. I don’t think I’ll swim there, but I have talked to a lot of Division III coaches and I have my options open I have always loved little kids. I worked at the library over the summer. They always teach you something, which is great.”
BG: What else do you do at school besides athletics?
AS: “I am in Key Club, I’m president of the National Honor Society and I’m in Students Against Destructive Decisions. I love to do volunteer work and give back to the community. Every day, I get to go to The Waters nursing home in Greencastle through my career Internship class. That is the favorite part of my whole day. I help them with activities and try to give them fun things to do. Nursing homes are not the most fun places, and a lot of them are not happy to be there. I get to make their day by doing something fun with them.”
BG: Outside of school activities and volunteering, what other things do you like to do?
AS: “I like to watch romance and action movies, and I love my friends. I’m a very social person. I go out with so many different people to movies and out to eat. I love BW3s. It’s my favorite place. We have a dog named Gus; he’s a mutt. I do a lot of things with him. I like pop music and country music, and I like funny sitcom TV shows [‘Friends’, ‘The Office’ and ‘How I Met Your Mother’]. Shows that are all off the air, but are on Netflix.”
BG: What is something you have done before that you would like to do someday?
AS: “I’d like to skydive. It’s like flying, that no one can do — but you can get close to flying.”
BG: What are your favorite and least favorite foods?
AS: “My favorite is fettuccine alfredo. I had that for lunch [Tuesday]. My least favorite is brussel sprouts. They are very bitter, and fettuccine alfredo is just food from heaven. It’s very tasty and it is food from heaven.”
BG: Describe your whole North Putnam experience.
AS: “North Putnam has been the best place. It’s so involved in the students. Everybody knows everybody and everyone is always supporting everyone else whenever something good or something bad happens. The teachers are especially good with that. When we lost a classmate last summer [Dylan Hess], it was really cool to see the support that came from that terrible time. Everybody gave each other a lot of support. A lot of our staff is very helpful in getting people to achieve what they want to achieve. If it’s swimming, or going to Butler to major in pre-medicine, they’ll do whatever they can.”
BG: What goals do you have for the rest of the year?
AS: “As far as swimming, I would like to win the county, do well in the conference and advance to the sectional finals. Academically, I hope to be valedictorian and to keep my grades up.”