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Few high school athletes could even dream of accomplishing what Andie Varsho made appear effortless in her four years Marshfield High School. Varsho tallied 11 varsity letters and earned All-State honors in tennis, basketball and softball, helping the 2010 graduate become the inaugural winner of the Pat Richter Award presented by WSN as the Triple Play Triple Threat Female Athlete of the Year.

The Triple Play Triple Threat of the Week is an honor given on WisSports.net to the top senior boys and girls three-sport athletes in the state and is sponsored by the local community telephone companies of Wisconsin. At the end of the school year, those awarded with the weekly honor are eligible for the Pat Richter Award, which will go out to the top boys and girls three-sport athlete of the season.

Hugh V. "Pat" Richter is one of Wisconsin's most storied student-athletes in state history. He was a three-sport athlete at Madison East High School, competing in football, basketball and baseball. He went on to fame at the University of Wisconsin, earning nine varsity letters in three sports. He would later become the Athletic Director at Wisconsin.

Much like Richter, Varsho showed the discipline and desire necessary to succeed in four years' worth of blood, sweat and tears. Yet the amount of time spent on the courts and fields is something she truly treasured.

"After school, I always look forward to practices," Varsho said. "I just love being busy and not lazy and just sitting around. That's just how I am as a person--I have to do something all the time."

Varsho began her high school athletic career on the tennis court, earning First Team All-Wisconsin Valley Conference at No. 3 singles as a freshman and at No. 2 singles as a sophomore. She was a First Team All-WVC nominee as a junior playing No. 1 doubles alongside Haley Ott, and ended her tennis career as a senior with Second-Team All-WVC and First-Team All-State honors playing No. 1 singles. Varsho earned an individual State berth each of the past three seasons and advanced to the quarterfinal round in singles as a senior. Though he realized tennis porobably wasn't Varsho's first choice, head coach Bill Davis said he witnessed the same drive and focus on the tennis court as she offered in the other two sports.

"I have always enjoyed working with her and watching her play," Davis said. "She had over 90 wins in singles and doubles in her high school career... Tennis may not have been her favorite sport but she played it with passion and showed her desire to win and do her best."

Just weeks after the tennis seasons ended, Varsho (pictured at left with her younger sister and fellow three-sport athlete, Taylor) laced up her high-tops and led the Tigers to three WVC, three regional and two sectional championships in girls basketball. A starting point guard for three seasons, Varsho averaged a career 7.8 points per game and helped Marshfield earn berths in the 2008 and 2009 Division 1 State Tournaments. She was a unanimous First Team All-Conference selection as a senior after an Honorable Mention nominee the season prior, and was also named a WBCA Division 1 North All-Star this past spring.

But the real excitement began when the snowdrifts gave way to green grass. Her most decorated sport, softball, was where Varsho shined brightest. Boasting an impressive career hitting percentage of .574, including a blistering .675 mark her senior year, Varsho was more than just a terror for opposing pitchers. As one of Wisconsin's elite four-year center fielders, she threw 23 assists and committed just eight career errors. Varsho stole 33 bases and was thrown out just twice, boasting an on-base percentage of .722 her senior year alone. Not surprisingly, those stats awarded her First Team All-Conference all four years, including WVC Player of the Year in 2009, as well as First Team All-State honors all four seasons. Despite the Tigers' middle-of-the-pack finishes in conference play, Varsho's individual accolades didn't go unnoticed. She announced this year that she will take up a Division I softball scholarship next fall at Purdue University in West Lafayette, Ind.

Marshfield head coach Mike Voss said that it was her natural competitive nature, paired with natural ability that allowed Varsho to excel.

"She wants to be the best in everything that she does and has that drive and desire to put the time and effort into these sports to do that," Voss said. "She is also a very good athlete and no matter what she does she makes it look easy and it comes to her in that way. I think when you combine the athlete and the desire that Andie has, you get the success that she has had."

Strong genetics also hasn't hurt Varsho, as her father, Gary, played Major League Baseball for eight seasons with the Cubs, Pirates, Reds and Phillies and is currently the bench coach for Pittsburgh. Much like his oldest daughter, Gary also played outfield for most of his MLB career, though Andie said she may be moving to second base next season for the Boilermakers. Andie's younger sister, Taylor, was also a sophomore standout last season for Marshfield, lettering in the same three sports. Voss also said Andie's talents in tennis and basketball only helped develop her prowess on the softball field.

"I feel that anytime you are able to participate in other sports you benefit in the other sports," Voss said. "Playing tennis definitely helped with her hand eye coordination, agility, quickness, and in area like that... I know [head basketabll coach Heidi Michaelis] has stated a number of times that Andie was like having a coach on the floor.  I believe that also helped Andie on the softball field as well. With the success that the basketball team has had with her as the floor leader, she also took over that role on the softball field and that has made her a stronger player and teammate."

Another call from the Richter playbook includes excellence in the classroom. Richter was named Wisconsin's Big Ten Medal of Honor winner (for academic and athletic excellence) in 1963 and was inducted into the Verizon/CoSIDA (College Sports Information Directors of America) Academic All-America Hall of Fame in 1995. Filling this requirement with a solid grade point average in the classroom as well, Varsho was named one of just 16 female WIAA Scholar Athletes, proving she was able to handle arguably the most difficult part of being a high school scholar-athlete.

"Juggling all the time for athletics with school... It gets tough for me with all my AP classes, but I do manage to get it done," Varsho said earlier this year.

Obviously, the multi-talented Andie Varsho has had no trouble finding ways to get it done.

To view our initial profile of Andie as part of the Triple Play Triple Threat Athlete of the Week series, please click here.