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Devon Wills (born March 28, 1984) is an American women’s
lacrosse Lacrosse is a team sport played with a lacrosse stick and a lacrosse ball. It is the oldest organized sport in North America, with its origins with the indigenous people of North America as early as the 12th century. The game was extensively ...
player. Having played with the
Dartmouth Big Green The Dartmouth College Big Green are the varsity and club athletic teams representing Dartmouth College, an American university located in Hanover, New Hampshire. Dartmouth's teams compete at the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) ...
at the collegiate level, she would become the first female player to sign a contract with the
New York Lizards The New York Lizards, originally the Long Island Lizards, were a Major League Lacrosse (MLL) team based in Hempstead, New York, located on Long Island. They are original members of the MLL. They lost the league's inaugural game on June 7, 2001 to ...
of
Major League Lacrosse Major League Lacrosse (MLL) was a men's field lacrosse league in the United States. The league's inaugural season was in 2001. Teams played anywhere from ten to 16 games in a summertime regular season. This was followed by a four-team playoff f ...
. From 2007-13, Wills was a member of the United States national team. In 2016, she became the first-ever draft pick of the Long Island Sound, one of four charter franchises in the
United Women's Lacrosse League The United Women’s Lacrosse League (UWLX) was a women's lacrosse league in the United States. It was co-founded in Boston, Massachusetts, by Digit Murphy and Aronda Kirby of the Play It Forward Sports Foundation, under the ownership of United ...
.


Playing career


NCAA

Named the Ivy League Rookie of the Year in 2003, Wills was also named to the All-Ivy League second-team notice. Wills participated in the 2003 and 2004 NCAA quarterfinals in 2003 and 2004. In 2005, Dartmouth qualified for the national semifinals. In her senior season, Wills was named team captain as the team appeared in the 2006 NCAA national championship game. During her Dartmouth career, Wills also qualified for a spot on the US national development team.


USA Lacrosse

One of Wills’ first experiences with the US national team included a roster spot on the Prague Cup Touring Team in 2008. With the US national team, Wills would capture a pair of gold medals in the FIL World Cup (2009, 2013). In the aftermath of the 2009 FIL World Cup, Wills logged a 6.69 goals against average and a 46.6 save percentage. Wills was recognized as the Player of the Match in the championship game. She would log eight saves in the 8-7 championship win over Australia. At the 2013 World Cup in Oshawa, Ontario (located east of Toronto), Wills started all seven games. Overall, she would post a goals against average of 5.58. Wills was named to the training squad that shall prepare for the 2017 edition of the FIL World Cup.


UWLX

Selected by the
Long Island Sound Long Island Sound is a marine sound and tidal estuary of the Atlantic Ocean. It lies predominantly between the U.S. state of Connecticut to the north and Long Island in New York to the south. From west to east, the sound stretches from the Eas ...
with their first pick in the 2016 UWLX Draft, Wills would gain the start in the first game in franchise history. In addition, said game was also the first in UWLX history. Opposing the
Baltimore Ride The Baltimore Ride were a United Women's Lacrosse League (UWLX) professional women's field lacrosse team based in Baltimore, Maryland. They played in the UWLX since the 2016 season. In the 2016 season, the four teams in the UWLX played in a ba ...
, Long Island prevailed by a 13-12 tally. Of note, Wills allowed the first goal in UWLX history to Beth Glaros, while also registering the first win in league history.


Coaching career

Upon graduating from Dartmouth, Wills remained with the program serving as an assistant coach from 2007-08. Serving in the capacities of both defensive coordinator and recruiting coordinator, she also helped to start the Dartmouth Winter Lacrosse Camp. In 2010, Wills joined the University of Denver as a volunteer assistant in 2010. During the season, the Pioneers enjoyed a 13-5 record, qualifying for the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation finals. In 2011, she would be appointed to a full-time assistant position on the coaching staff. Joining the USC Trojans women’s lacrosse program in 2013, Wills would become the associate head coach in 2016. Other roles that she occupied with the program included assistant coach, defensive coordinator, and recruiting coordinator. On August 1, 2018, Wills was announced as the new head coach for Harvard Women's Lacrosse.


Statistics

*GP = Games Played *GAA = Goals Against Average *PCT = Percentage *W = Wins *L = Losses *GB = Ground Balls ''Statistics source''


Awards and honors

*2003 Ivy League Rookie of the Year *2003 All-Ivy Second Team *2004-06 All-Ivy First Team *2004-06 IWLCA/US Lacrosse All-America second team *2013 FIL World Cup All-World Team *2006, 2009 Women's Lacrosse Award from Sportswomen of Colorado *2016 UWLX All-Star Selection


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wills, Devon 1984 births American lacrosse players Women's lacrosse players Living people Sportspeople from Colorado World Games gold medalists Competitors at the 2017 World Games Dartmouth Big Green athletes New York Lizards players Dartmouth Big Green coaches Denver Pioneers coaches USC Trojans women's lacrosse coaches Harvard Crimson coaches Lacrosse goaltenders American lacrosse coaches