By Ella Franzman – Editor-In-Chief & Editorial Editor

Sophomore girls soccer player Emily Vella and senior boys soccer player Lucca Venditti were named September Athletes of the Month. 

Each month, two student-athletes are honored with this award for their achievements in and outside of school. 

“I think qualities that fit an ‘Athlete of the Month’ are coachable, respectful, having good sportsmanship, and being a hard worker,” Vella said. “Being Athlete of the Month makes me feel good because it means that my hard work has been paying off.”

Vella has had a great start to her girls soccer career at Jonathan Law and continues to be unstoppable. In the team’s first 10 games, Vella scored a total of 13 goals, including three hat tricks.

“Emily isn’t just an incredibly skilled player, scoring a hat trick in three separate games; she is the type of player that makes the players around her better,” Head Coach Mrs. Francisco said. “She is a playmaker, always looking to score but also always willing to give an assist, take a corner, play a different position, just do anything to help.” 

Vella not only plays on the soccer team but plays on the girls basketball team and is a member of the girls outdoor track team. Vella emphasized how excited she was that people saw her work paying off and voted for her. 

Venditti, meanwhile, has been a member of the boys soccer team since freshman year has now stepped up to be the goalie for his senior season. Venditti saw some time in the net last season, but for the Lawmen it was mostly Declan Wywoda. 

“I think I had some great saves that lead to us beating foran, and some all around good saves even in games that we lost,” Venditti said. “I am very excited that I was able to win this honor and look forward to continuing with the quality I have been showing.” 

The boys just recently qualified for states after defeating Lyman Hall 4-2 on their Senior Night. The Lawmen now sit 7-5-2 with two regular season games left. 

“I think Lucca embodies what a Jonathan Law athlete of the month stands for. Strong academics and high level play on the field,” Head Coach Mr. Gruber said. “Lucca has made some big saves on the soccer field that led our team to get some much needed results. He has been a leader on and off the field to our younger players and has been a pleasure to coach.” 

Venditti looks to continue to help the team in his last three regular season games and then throughout the postseason to try and extend his senior season as long as possible. 

Vella and Venditti were nominated for Athlete of the Month differently than previous nominees. In previous years, a Google Form would be posted on the Jonathan Law Athletics social media pages and anyone could nominate athletes for Athlete of the Month.

This year Athletic Director Tom Drew decided to switch things up. 

“By adjusting the way we select our athletes of the month we have increased participation significantly,” Drew said. “The convenience of a poll rather than filling out a nomination form has allowed for more voices in the Jonathan Law community to be heard when selecting this monthly honor.”