Staff Report
Coaches can talk all they want about how they want kids who will buy into the program, be grinders, hustle, show leadership — all the cliché stuff. But in most sports — and especially field hockey — you need somebody who can score if you’re going to get anywhere.
St. Joseph Academy senior Stella Devlin has all that cliché stuff in spades, and she also was one of the most prolific scorers in South Jersey throughout her career. She racked up 30 goals this past fall in 21 games, leading the Wildcats to a 17-4 record and an appearance in the sectional championship game, where St. Joe’s postseason dreams came to an end against powerful Camden Catholic.
Devlin scored at least a goal or an assist in 19 of the Wildcats’ 21 games this past season, including five goals and an assist in the four games St. Joe’s lost. She finished with the best season of her four-year career, notching 10 assists to go along with those 30 goals as a senior. For her career, Devlin had 75 goals and 21 assists, including a 24-goal effort as a junior.
With Devlin leading the way this season, the Wildcats won the Cape-Atlantic League Tournament for the first time ever. We’ll see more from her this spring as she’s also a prolific scorer in lacrosse, entering her senior year with 133 tallies — including eight games last year in which she scored at least five goals.
- Dave O’Sullivan, Staff Writer
