SuburbanOneSports.com recognizes a male and female featured athlete each week. The awards, sponsored by Univest, are given to seniors of good character who are students in good standing that have made significant contributions to their teams. Selections are based on nominations received from coaches, athletic directors and administrators.
Univest’s SuburbanOneSports.com Featured Female Athlete (Week of March 31, 2016)
The background wallpaper on Heather Whalin’s home computer is a photo capturing the moment Devon Mela – on her knees – is lofting the game-winning goal into the cage in Council Rock North’s 1-0 win over Spring-Ford in a second round district field hockey game. Interestingly, the Council Rock North senior insisted that a teammate tipped it into the cage. Whalin’s photo tells a different story. Talk to Whalin or lacrosse coach Krista Dayton-Ventresca, and it’s a typical response by Mela, who is eager to give credit but almost reluctant to receive it. “She’s a very humble player,” Dayton-Ventresca said. “She’s very quiet. She exemplifies the way you should approach anything – show up, work your hardest, and you get results because of it. She does have talent, but she shows up and she works hard.” Added Whalin, “She does not need to be in the spotlight. She makes a bigger deal when other people score than when she scores.” Add Mela’s selfless style of play to a tremendous work ethic, and you have the consummate team player. “I have never heard one of her teammates say a mean thing about her,” Whalin said. “When kids come back to visit the program, they run right over to Devon because she’s that good soul.”
Mela is a two-sport standout – a three-year varsity starter in field hockey and a four-year starter in lacrosse. Her numbers on the hockey field – 31 goals in three years – equate with those of players going on to play at a high collegiate level. Mela has been one of the lacrosse team’s top point producers in each of the last three seasons and last year led the Indians in goals scored (45), points (57) and draw controls (32). “She has a very high lacrosse IQ,” Dayton-Ventresca said. “She moves well off the ball, she moves well with the ball, and she’s got an excellent finish. Defensively, she anticipates well. She’s tenacious going after ground balls. She’s just smart.”
Coming as no surprise, Mela has found herself in a leadership role. She was a captain of last fall’s successful field hockey squad and was elected a two-year captain of her lacrosse team. “As a teammate, Devon is respected and well liked,” Dayton-Ventresca said. Mela will continue her lacrosse career next year at Albright College, and although undecided on a major, she is considering a possible biochemistry major with a minor in nutrition.
To read Mela’s complete profile, please click on the following link: http://www.suburbanonesports.com/featured-athletes/female/devon-mela-0060730
Univest’s SuburbanOneSports.com Featured Male Athlete (Week of March 31, 2016)
Upper Dublin and North Penn met in the pool on Dec. 17 in an early-season matchup of two of the area’s top boys swimming teams. Upper Dublin senior Wyatt Amdor’s most memorable moment from the meet, however, had nothing to do with places, times or medals. “The highlight of the meet for me was the very end after the 400 free relay, we had some kids from the Special Olympics come in, and they swam a relay,” Amdor said. “Every person stayed, everyone was on their feet, and we had an opportunity to get in and swim with them. This one kid won, and to see the smile on his face when he finished, I was so happy for him, everyone was so excited for him. His reaction – that was the highlight for the meet and maybe my season.” For the record, the Cardinals topped the Knights that day by a score of 97-89, and Amdor’s efforts in the pool went a long way toward that victory. Ask him about his races, however, and those details simply aren’t as important to him.
It comes as no surprise to Upper Dublin coach Geoff Scheuer that Amdor would derive more pleasure from someone else’s success than from his own. “He gets so excited when he knows how hard his teammates work and he sees them go fast,” Scheuer said. “He brings a positive attitude to everything and everyone, and I think he carries himself in such a way that he shows he loves to be part of the team.” Amdor’s performances have played a major role in the Cardinals’ dominance en route to the District One championship and a strong showing at states. The UD senior won gold in the 100 breaststroke at both districts and states and was part of the 400 free relay that won both district and state titles and established a new state record. “You could tell that for Wyatt, the 400 free relay was the best part of that meet,” Scheuer said. “The way that meet ended was all about the team, and Wyatt is all about the team.”
Amdor, a member of the National Honors Society, also excels in the classroom. He has signed to swim for the highly touted University of Kentucky men’s team next year. He is entering the school with an undecided major, though he is leaning toward a business major. And after Amdor has traded in Cardinal red for Wildcat blue, he will leave behind a legacy as one of the top breaststrokers and performers in the storied history of Upper Dublin boys’ swimming. Not surprisingly, Amdor hopes he’ll be remembered less as a name and time in the record books and more as a teammate and friend who tried to make everyone around him better.
To read Amdor’s compete profile, please click on the following link: http://www.suburbanonesports.com/featured-athletes/male/wyatt-amdor-0060736
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