Toy is S.J. girls' athlete of year

Posted: June 16, 2012

There is something to be said about having a motor. Stephanie Toy's never seemed to stop running, through fall, winter, and spring.

Toy will graduate from Moorestown with 12 varsity letters in soccer, basketball, and lacrosse. She earned all-American status and a scholarship to Notre Dame in lacrosse. As a senior, she was first-team all-conference in all three sports and The Inquirer's South Jersey Player of the Year in lacrosse, leading Moorestown to a 26-0 record and the Tournament of Champions crown.

These accomplishments have earned Toy The Inquirer's South Jersey Senior Athlete of the Year award in girls' sports.

Toy undoubtedly has unbelievable athletic ability, but what has set her above the competition is an inner drive fueled by a true distaste for losing.

"She was a workhorse on the field and so tough, and that is what made her so special," said Moorestown girls' soccer coach Bill Mulvihill, whose team won the South Jersey Group 3 championship last season with Toy patrolling the midfield. "You can't take away from her heart."

Sometimes an athlete might let up in her so-called other sports, but Toy had enough respect for her teammates and her sport to treat each season as if it were the most important.

"Each sport is its own individual season, and when it was soccer season, I was focused on doing that the best that I could, and the same with basketball," she said. "I know I'm playing lacrosse in college, but I wanted to be the best I can at the other sports because they were so important to me."

Toy's actions were even more forceful than her words.

"She hustled more than anybody I think I ever had," Moorestown girls' basketball coach Chris Hill said.

In lacrosse, Toy started all four years for a program that will finish ranked in the Top 10 nationally in at least one poll for the 13th consecutive season.

Deanna Knobloch just completed her 21st year as coach, she has a career record of 425-29-4, and she has sent scores of players to college. So when Knobloch made this recent statement that Toy was the best player she has coached, that carried quite a bit of weight.

"I know it's a huge statement and it's not to take away from any of the other great players I have had, but there is something about Steph that a lot of kids don't have," Knobloch said. "She only knows one way to play and practice and giving everything she has, never stopping, and never giving up.

"She doesn't accept losing," Knobloch added. "Everything about her is about being the best, and it comes from her inner drive."

Toy, who finished with 253 career goals for Moorestown, has one more bit of business in representing her high school before concentrating on Notre Dame.

On June 30, she will compete in the Under Armour All-America Lacrosse Classic at Towson University's Johnny Unitas Stadium.

"I am really looking forward to that," Toy said.

While Toy's intensity was second to none, she had the ability to flip the switch off once the competition concluded.

"What I love most about her is not just the athlete, but the person I have grown to love," Knobloch said. "As intense as she is on the field, she is just a fun-loving and goofy girl off of it and she is about having fun the moment she steps off the field."

As much as Toy is excited about attending Notre Dame, she will always appreciate the time she spent competing in three sports at Moorestown.

"I will always miss it," she said.

No more than the teams and coaches will miss the presence and athletic ability of somebody who knew when to stop only at the final buzzer.


Contact Marc Narducci at 856-779-3225, mnarducci@phillynews.com or @sjnard on Twitter. Find his Rally columns at www.philly.com/narducci

|
|
|
|
|