Athletes of the Month – October

The Catholic Star Herald highlights the Diocese’s student athletes who stood out during the month of October.

Liam Higgins

Bishop Eustace Preparatory School, Pennsauken

Soccer

Liam Higgins set out to beat his school’s single-season goal scoring record, and the Bishop Eustace senior hit his mark in dramatic fashion. Higgins tied the school record of 25 goals on Oct. 22 with a hat trick in a 3-2 overtime victory over talented Glassboro. Higgins then set the new record at 27 with a clutch two-goal performance in a 2-0 Crusaders’ win over Noor-Ul-Iman School, Monmouth Junction, in the semifinal round of the South Jersey Non-Public B playoffs.

Read more about Higgins: On field, Bishop Eustace senior ‘can make anything happen’

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Mina Lockhart

Our Lady of Mercy Academy, Newfield

Field Hockey

Mina Lockhart kicked it into another gear in October as the Our Lady of Mercy Academy field hockey team continued its record-breaking season. After scoring seven goals in September, Lockhart, a junior, sent a barrage of shots at her opponents’ cage, burying 13 goals and adding six assists in October. The Villagers set a team record with 14 wins and made their first appearance in a sectional semifinal before ending their season with a 14-2-1 record.

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Shaelan McNally

Paul VI High School, Haddonfield

Cross Country

Shaelan McNally still has a senior season of cross country ahead of her to topple school records, but the Paul VI junior made incredible strides this year with individual wins at the Camden County Championships at Timber Creek High School on Oct. 14; the Olympic Conference Championships on Oct. 19 at Dream Park in Logan Township, and the Bob Kiessling Invitational on Oct. 29 at Dream Park. McNally continued her strong performance into November with a sixth-place finish in the State Championships meet at Holmdel.

Read more about McNally: Paul VI runner “racing against history”

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Mike Petito

Gloucester Catholic High School, Gloucester City

Football

Football linemen don’t often rack up fancy stats or gain the recognition they deserve for doing all the grunt work in the toughest areas of the field. But two-way lineman Mike Petito helped turn a once-struggling program into a playoff team in 2022. Petito’s hard work and dedication as one of the team’s captains paid off this year as the Rams ended a 15-game losing streak. Not only did Gloucester Catholic get back in the win column, but the Rams put together a five-game winning streak with convincing wins over Riverside and Holy Cross in October.

Read more about Petito: For Gloucester Catholic junior, leadership runs in family

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Lorena Saavedra

Holy Spirit High School, Absecon

Tennis

Lorena Saavedra’s senior year was topped off by her most sought-after prize. The Holy Spirit first singles tennis player captured the Cape Atlantic League singles title after two years of chasing that dream with circumstances beyond her control.

After finishing as a quarterfinalist in her freshman year, Saavedra waited on the sidelines in 2020 as the tournament was canceled by the pandemic, and was forced to watch in 2021 because of injury. Saavedra, a Franklin & Marshall College commit, defeated Absegami High School’s Olivia Hughes 6-3, 6-2 to win the Cape Atlantic Title this year to top off a fantastic senior season.

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Dillan Sorino

Camden Catholic High School, Cherry Hill

Soccer

Dillan Sorino made up for lost time. After missing most of last season with tears to her anterior cruciate ligament, her medial collateral ligament and her meniscus, Sorino returned healthy to the pitch this season and delivered 20 goals to lead the Irish in scoring, with 11 of those markers coming in the month of October. One of Sorino’s best performances came in the Irish’s penultimate game as she netted a hat trick in a 5-0 win over Notre Dame High School, Lawrenceville, in the first round of the South Jersey Non-Public A playoffs.

Read more about Sorino: Painful injury leads to personal growth for Camden Catholic athlete