There is a question making its way around Glen Rose right now, and it seems to come up in nearly every conversation about Lady Tiger Sports. “Have you heard about Abby?” Yes, we have, and at this point it would be harder not to. Abigail “Abby” Shaffer has arrived in Glen Rose, winning races, turning heads and showing all the signs of what could become one of the most dominant distance-running careers our school has seen. Calling what she is doing impressive feels like an understatement. The most exciting part is also the easiest to forget. She is only a sophomore. Abby came to Glen Rose from Andrews, but she did not arrive as an unknown runner trying to find her place. She brought a remarkable résumé with her. As a freshman, Abby won the 2025 District 3-4A cross-country championship and helped lead the Andrews Lady Mustangs to a team district title. She continued through the postseason and finished seventh at the UIL Class 4A State Cross-Country Championship with a time of 11:28.10, earning a state medal during her first year of high school. Then came track season, where she proved cross country was not some one-season accident. Abby posted a 10:49.54 in the 3,200 meters and a 5:08.37 in the 1,600. Both were the best reported marks in the Midland area that season, and her 3,200-meter time ranked among the fastest freshman performances in Texas. That sounds like the story of a child who was born running, probably racing other toddlers across the living room and collecting medals before she could spell “cross country.” Not exactly. According to her family, Abby was considered the “least athletic” one in the family when she was little. She did not just avoid sports, she apparently avoided unnecessary movement altogether. On family hikes, somebody often had to carry her. These days, Abby is the one leaving the whole family behind, and I am guessing nobody is volunteering to throw her over a shoulder and carry her to the finish line anymore. Abby had never done anything athletic until pre-athletics required her to run a mile. Then, without warning and apparently without giving her family any previous indication that she possessed this ability, she beat everyone. She came home and told her mom what she had done. Her mom did not believe her. In Mom’s defense, she had never seen Abby run more than about 50 yards. For all she knew, Abby had misunderstood the assignment, found a shortcut or convinced somebody to carry her around the track. But Abby had really done it. In seventh grade, she joined cross country because her best friend was joining. There was no grand plan or lifelong dream of becoming an elite runner. She was simply going along with her friend. That friend quit after the first meet. Abby stayed, and the rest became history. Since then, she has won nearly every meet she has entered. Now she is wearing Glen Rose red, and she has not slowed down. Abby opened the 2026 season by winning at Brock with a time of 12:11. She followed that with a victory at the Brownwood Invitational in 11:03.48. At the Burleson Elk Run, she crossed first again in 10:37. Then on Wednesday, running at home in Glen Rose, she claimed her fourth consecutive championship with a time of 11:21. Four meets, four wins. Cross-country courses are different, so comparing times from one meet to another does not always tell the whole story. Some courses are flat, some have hills, and Texas weather occasionally seems determined to eliminate distance running as a sport. Her finishing place tells us everything we need to know. First, every. single. time. "Every picture we take of Abby seems to show both feet completely off the ground". I am no running expert, but I am beginning to wonder if we are dealing with an actual superhero. Does she possess some kind of superpower? Has she figured out how to fly just low enough that the officials cannot disqualify her? The rest of the runners are fighting the course, the heat and gravity. Abby appears to have eliminated at least one of those problems. Gravity has reviewed the photographs and is considering filing a complaint. All jokes aside, Glen Rose needs to get behind this young lady. Cross-country runners do not compete under Friday night lights with packed stands and a train horn announcing every score. There are no timeouts, no substitutions and not much room to hide when your body starts telling you to stop. It is you, the course and however much determination you can find when your legs are begging for mercy. What Abby is accomplishing deserves our attention and our support. Maybe we should go ahead and get her autograph now. A few years from now, we may be telling people we watched her before everybody else knew her name. Parents, get your daughters in line, because Abigail Shaffer is someone they need to be watching and looking up to. Not simply because she wins, but because her story shows that talent does not always announce itself early. Sometimes it is hiding inside the child being carried on the family hike, waiting for one required mile to reveal it. The little girl whose mom did not believe she had beaten everyone became a district champion, a state medalist and one of the best young distance runners in Texas. Now she is a Glen Rose Lady Tiger with nearly three full years of high school still ahead of her. So yes, we have heard about Abby. If you have not watched her run yet, fix that. Pay attention, show up and support her, because this girl has something special. Just make sure you are watching when the race starts. She will not stay nearby for very long. I hope Glen Rose is paying attention. Abigail Shaffer is only getting started.