Soccer
Favorite athlete: Bukayo Saka or LeSean McCoy
Favorite teams: Arsenal, Eagles, and Kentucky Basketball
Favorite memory competing in sports: Comeback win against Pennridge. Went down 4-1 and won 5-4.
Most embarrassing/funniest thing that has happened while competing in sports: Getting Megged back to back and falling over in practice.
Music on Playlist: Every genre except country
Future plans: Go to college and become a teacher
Words to live by: Do the right thing, even when nobody’s looking.
One goal before turning 30: One thing I really want to do is go camping in Alaska and learn valuable survival skills.
One thing people don’t know about me: I write right-handed, but I swing a bat and golf left-handed
By GORDON GLANTZ
If you are looking for the value of Elijah “Eli” Azbill to the Central Bucks East soccer program, the scoresheet is a dead end street.
In two seasons on varsity, he was defensive player. And, due to a knee injury that he did his best to play through, he found himself forced to miss time.
Nonetheless, he remained at the heart and soul of coach Josh Isaacsohn’s squad.
“Eli is just all-around great soccer player but, even more, just a great all-around kid,” said the coach. “He is a very mature player, on and off the field.
“This is the kind of team player that you want. He probably didn’t get as much playing time as he would’ve wanted, but he still contributed massively, through the years, on and off the soccer field.”
Proof that Azbill was the ultimate team player was that his favorite memory as a Patriot was - despite being on the sidelines nursing his injured knee - a 5-4 come-from-behind win over Pennridge.
“I wasn’t playing in that game,” the East senior said. “I wasn’t playing a lot my whole senior year. I had a torn meniscus. I was playing on it as much as I could.
“I was sitting on the bench, and we were down 4-1. At halftime, our coach was just walking us through it. He knew and we knew that we were the better team. We all came together and won it in O.T.
“It was crazy. We all just ran on the field. It was definitely a happy moment in my career. And even though I wasn’t out there playing, I wanted us to win and see all the guys succeed. I always just tried to be the best person I could be for the team, even when I couldn’t play.”
Helping Hands
Azbill admittedly has a natural instinct to help others, whether or not it’s noticed.
He has been involved with clubs like OEG (Operation Eternal Gratitude) that supports the military and First Responders, but his spirit of volunteerism has not always been that formal.
“A lot of times, people are not really looking at what you are doing,” he said. “Sometimes you need to know what you are doing to make the world a better place. I always aspire to be the best person I can be to help anybody else out that I can. I know that I am very lucky to be where I am in my life right now. I just try and help out other people who aren’t as fortunate as I am.”
This approach was definitely noticed within the team structure.
“He is a kid who picks up the water, grabs the balls and picks up the cones,” said Isaacsohn. “He has been doing that for four years.
“He does this very subtly. He never wants attention. He is one of the most stand-up and mature kids on the field, and that has been through all of his time in the CB East program.”
Leaving a Void
This past season ended for the Patriots in the second round of districts against Springfield-Montco.
With only three returning starters, they were 10-8-2 with all eight losses by a goal.
Isaacsohn is looking forward to having a strong squad of returnees next season, but he knows that not having Azbill around will leave a void.
“There is not any one thing about him that sticks out,” said the coach. “It’s just the consistency of just how great of kid that he is. That’s what will always stay with me.
“That piece will be missing next year. There is normally that kid who acts like this, but not to this level. There’s going to be a hole. It’s going to be interesting to see if there is anyone else who has some of his strong traits who can fill that.
“We are much more concerned with how these kids do in life, and these are life skills that he is showing that are going to go on forever.”
Azbill made an impact doing a lot of the little things, and it made him a leader by example.
“Off the field, he had quiet leadership, that came without ever really wanting anything in return,” said Isaacsohn. “This is that dependable kid, day in and day out. He consistently goes above and beyond.
“He is asking the coaches how their days are going. If something is going on, he notices it. This is a kid who was much more concerned about the team than himself.
“He always presented himself that way, and it has only gotten stronger and deeper as time has gone on. He really showed this year.”
Azbill has similar respect for Isaacsohn as a coach/mentor.
“He is a role model for me, just in the way he treats people,” the East senior said. “It shows in the way he cares about the team. He puts in so much effort for us to succeed. I really like that about him.”
Finding a Place
As a player, Azbill rose up through the ranks – freshman team, JV as a sophomore and then varsity as a junior and senior – and bounced around playing various positions before settling in as a key defensive player off the bench.
“He was not on varsity until his junior year, and wasn’t really a starter for us in most games,” said Isaacsohn. “He was that kid who came in for 10-20 minutes, and in some really important defensive situations.
“That’s where I would really say he developed the most. In his freshman and sophomore years, and even into his junior year, he was kind of more versatile for us. You could put him into the midfield or even an offensive spot, but he grew into being a very solid defensive midfielder/stopper. You knew, when he went in there, what you were going to get. He was going to give you solid minutes and be totally dependable and get everything out of him that he had.”
The position changes, to Azbill, were just a way to get on the field help the program.
“I moved around to a lot of positions in high school,” he said. “I was never really the most talented player on the team. I just always tried to work hard to make up for it.”
Reflecting back now, the only regret for Azbill was the knee injury.
“I kept on playing through it,” he said. “I went to the doctor a few times, they told me to keep stretching and stuff. It wasn’t until halfway through my senior year that I got X-rays. They told me that I had completely torn my whole meniscus. I was just playing on it my whole junior and senior years.”
Higher Calling
An honors student with a 3.5 GPA, Azbill plans to become a history teacher.
“I’m very passionate about history,” he said. “I think it’s really interesting. I think becoming a teacher sounds like a lot of fun. I would like being in an environment where I can help people and teach them things.”
Azbill is aware of the built-in stressors of the profession.
“Teachers have to do a lot, and I feel like they are underappreciated for what they do,” he said. “You’re dealing with all these kids, and you have to show them what to do.
“I can imagine that being very stressful, but you just have to do the best that you can and do your job and guide these young people down the right path.”
Azbill has narrowed his list of schools to two – Penn State and Kutztown.
At Kutztown, like many other PSAC schools, he can take part in a five-year program and come away with a master’s degree in education.
At Penn State, there is the opportunity to be at the epicenter of a full big college experience.
No matter where he lands, soccer will be in his future, whether it’s at the intramural or club level.
“Definitely,” he said. “I’ve always loved soccer. It’s the one sport that, when you enjoy it, it makes happier as a person.
“I would always want to be playing it, even when I’m older.”
Feeling Gratitude
Azbill moved around a bit because of his father’s career. He was born in Allentown and lived in upstate New York until he was 12 before moving to this area.
He has a close bond with his family -- parents Jackie and John and brothers Aidan and Nick.
“First on my list would be my mom,” said Azbill. “She gives a lot to my family. She volunteers a lot for a lot of things that I do, like club and high school soccer. She is such a great person. She tries to make everyone happy, and she is definitely one of my biggest role models. She has taught me a lot of things that I will value throughout my life.
“My dad is definitely the one who got me into sports. He is a big sports fans and really motivates me. We talk about sports a lot.”
Azbill also gave a shoutout to his friends and teammates
