Ella Stevens is months from beginning her collegiate career with the Blue Devils, but she spent time with Duke head coach Robbie Church Wednesday morning during a surprise announcement that Stevens is the Gatorade National Player of the Year.
Church and former Major League Soccer MVP Taylor Twellman brought Stevens the news beside her teammates at Grayson High School in Grayson, Ga. Stevens—a member of the Blue Devils’ fourth-ranked recruiting class—is the 11th-ranked senior in the country, according to TopDrawerSoccer.com, and is now the second Blue Devil to win the award after Mollie Pathman took it home in 2010.
“The Gatorade Player involves not only the athletic part of it, but it’s also the academic part and the character of a person, and we really feel that that’s what we see in Ella,” Church said. “It was neat to be here and see her receive it and just see her reaction."
Gatorade, along with other media outlets, brought a film crew to document how Stevens found out about the award. Stevens was told there would be a team meeting, and she watched a prerecorded video of the presentation of the award.
Then, as Stevens still watched, Twellman crept into the room and surprised her from behind with the trophy. The team clapped as Church came in with Stevens' family, and the midfielder attended a dinner honoring her Wednesday night.
“It was very overwhelming. I didn’t really expect it at all, either,” Stevens said. “People were kind of acting a little weird, and there were a lot of people who showed up for this lunch that was just supposed to be for the soccer team. So I was kind of on edge, I was like, ‘What’s going on?’”
Stevens tallied 74 goals and 84 assists during her high school career, won a state championship and was named the Georgia Gatorade Player of the Year as a junior. She also was a member of the U-17 Women’s National Team and helped the U-20 team to a victory in the 2015 CONCACAF Championship in Honduras.
During her senior season, Stevens said she played forward because former teammates graduated—versatility that Church said makes her a dynamic weapon.
“She, like a lot of our players, can play different positions,” Church said. “She’s one of those players that, when she gets the ball, you kind of sit up a little bit, like ‘What’s going to happen now?’”
Stevens is also friends with another incoming recruit from Duke, Emma Carlson, according to the Gwinnett Daily Post. The two grew up playing soccer with each other, play the same position and will be roommates next year.
This year’s incoming six freshmen will have to fight for playing time on a team that made the national championship a year ago and is returning 10 of its 11 starters.
Last year, Church brought in the No. 6 recruiting class in the nation, which immediately paid dividends.
Taylor Racioppi led the team in points, Kayla McCoy scored the winning goal against defending-champion Florida State in the College Cup and four freshmen played in more than half of the team’s games.
Stevens committed to Duke during her sophomore year of high school, and said she was impressed by the school's academics, athletics and Church's dedication.
“Robbie’s always been that kind of guy. He’s willing to drive out six hours to see a player like that, not even for a Gatorade Award,” Stevens said. “He really likes to have a good relationship with all of his players, he’s always the guy out there scouting.”
Stevens will now wait until July to find out if she is the Female High School Athlete of the Year, which pits the winners from each sport against one other. The award will be announced during a special ceremony before the ESPYs, the annual sports awards show.
Amrith Ramkumar contributed reporting.
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