'Play with grit': How this Shore player became the state's No. 1 girls basketball scorer
MANCHESTER TOWNSHIP – Based on her stellar first two varsity seasons, Devyn Quigley was expected to take another step forward with Manchester Township this winter. That was a given.
Nobody expected her step forward would be this gigantic.
A junior, Quigley routinely posts video game numbers. She has 11 double-doubles, nine 40-point performances and has scored at least 30 points 15 times. She’s netted a career-high 47 points two different times this year.
For the season, Quigley has averaged a seemingly unsustainable 36.3 points and 11.1 rebounds. She’s the state’s leading scorer, well ahead of the second highest scorer, Paul VI star and Notre Dame commit Hannah Hidalgo.
It’s the kind of year that’s extremely rare. It’s special. It’s why she's the No. 57 ranked recruit in the Class of 2024 according to ESPN’s rankings and why she has a 91 scout rating.
She's done so while routinely drawing top defenders and consistent double teams. And what should frighten opposing teams the most is this historic year feels natural to Quigley.
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“It’s not something I think about going into every game,” Quigley said during a recent practice. “My parents were worried once I started getting all these big numbers. They said don’t let it get to your head, just worry about getting into the flow of things and getting your teammates involved as much as possible.
“It kind of just comes to me.”
Quigley knew what she was in for this season. The Hawks only have one other player on the roster who had previous varsity experience entering the year, fellow junior and rebounding ace Zionna Short. The rest of the team is full of underclassmen and is very sparse with just eight players total on the roster.
Over the last decade or so, Manchester Township has transformed into a public powerhouse in the state and if that was going to continue, Quigley was aware that the team’s success was riding on her shoulders.
“I just knew this year in order for us to do really, really well, I was going to have to step up big,” Quigley said. “Not just on the court but also as a team leader.”
Aside from scoring the vast majority of the team’s points and facilitating the offense as the point guard, Quigley is pulling the group through its growing pains.
It wouldn’t be difficult to blame Quigley for being frustrated having carry an inexperienced team given her skillset. Manchester head coach Dave Beauchemin said Quigley has been extremely patient with her teammates and simply her presence on the court puts the green youngsters at ease.
“Her approach from the first practice was to incorporate everybody,” said Beauchemin, who won his 200th game with the program earlier this month. “It’s a testament to her character. She knew she needed to take on that role and create that positive energy.”
Manchester isn’t quite as good as it was in 2019 when it won its first ever Shore Conference and state titles or when it was regularly a state-ranked team. But the Hawks are still competitive, currently tied for first in B South, and that means opposing teams give them their best crack every night.
“I told the girls it starts with our attitude,” Quigley said. “I tell them everyone wants to embarrass Manchester because that’s what we’ve been doing for these past few years. You have to play with grit every single game.”
Staying home
With Manchester’s era as one of the best teams in the state ending for now, it would have been easy for Quigley to transfer out of her hometown school and to one of the traditional Shore Conference powers. In the age of constant transfers, Quigley on the move almost was expected, especially after the strong summer she had with her AAU team, Exodus NYC.
Quigley decided against that. The Hawks might not be favorites to win the Shore or state titles and the roster isn’t as full of stars as it used to be, but Quigley wanted to stay.
For her, it’s a family institution. Her father, Mike, played for the Hawks, and her aunts also attended the school. Her older sister, Jordan, played for Beauchemin and graduated in 2015.
“I love it here. The environment is great,” Quigley said. “The community that’s supported me for so long, I want to give back as much as I can.”
Even before she reached high school, Quigley knew she wanted to play for the Hawks. She remembers when she played for the Philadelphia Belles AAU team in middle school and watching former Manchester star Kemari Reynolds play on the older team. She was amazed by the dynamic point guard’s quickness and ball skills.
She also remembers when Leilani Correa transferred from Rutgers Prep to Manchester for her senior year in 2019, the most successful year in program history. Along with star forward Destiny Adams, Correa led the Hawks to history.
Quigley even remembers a specific Correa moment that helped convince her to stay home. A behind the back dribble into a reverse layup during the 2018 WOBM Christmas Classic dazzled the middle schooler.
“That stuff just sticks with you," Quigley said.
Quigley is now the figure that the youngsters look to. Manchester has a strong class in middle school currently, one that could stay home or venture to some of the other big schools in the area.
In Beauchemin's mind, a player like Quigley staying home can be an inspiration for the Manchester kids of the future to do something special at home too.
“It shows a positive light for any one of the girls there that wants to be one of the next ones that you don’t have to do it anywhere else but here,” Beauchemin said. “That’s a special quality. It would be very easy to go anywhere you want because that’s the world we live in. It says a lot about her and her family.”
Danny LoGiudice has covered local sports across New Jersey since 2014. Contact him at dlogiudice@gannettnj.com or @danny_logiudice on Twitter.
This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: Shore Conference girls basketball: Manchester's Devyn Quigley dominates
