Adelina Wilks was pumped to participate in high school sports at Bridgeton.
Coming from a long line of family members who went on to play at some of the top academic institutions in the country, Wilks set a high bar for herself and prepped for some grueling sessions.
That is, until Wilks suffered an injury in her first year on the girls soccer team.
“It wasn’t easy and I felt that I wasn’t going to be able to do anything,” Wilks reflected. “But my mentality changed and my family pushed me ahead, so that drove me to push harder.”
Now entering her senior year, Wilks has scored over 100 goals for her side after leading Bridgeton to its first winning season since 1996 last fall. Her 58 goals as a junior marked the highest total in New Jersey.
In basketball, Wilks already has more than 1,000 points.
Wilks is the South Jersey Times Girls Athlete of the Year for 2024.
Committed to St. Joseph’s University in Philadelphia for soccer, Wilks has been playing the game since she was 3 years old. She started played basketball in the sixth grade.
“It was a little bit of pressure on me,” Wilks said, referring to her family’s reputation for sporting excellence. “But once I started playing, the pressure kind of faded away.”
Cynthia Wilks, Lina’s aunt and athletic director for Bridgeton, makes sure that her niece knows she worked hard for her accolades.
“I have to remind her that everything that she receives, she earns,” Cynthia Wilks said. “There is no cheat sheet, no shortcuts to the day-to-day grind. She always wants to win.”
Cynthia Wilks is no stranger to the athletic world as a youth. She held the school mark of 84 goals scored, set during a three-year soccer career at Bridgeton from 1996-1998.
It is a feat that Lina has equalled and then some, scoring her 100th goal in October 2023 on her way to finishing the season with 107 goals over three varsity seasons.
Cynthia played basketball at Virginia Commonwealth, while another aunt, Helen, ran track at Ohio State. Even further, Lina has another aunt, Mary, currently Bridgeton’s assistant soccer coach, who played soccer at Monmouth. And her father Ray, a 1996 graduate of Bridgeton, starred in football and track and field for the Bulldogs and ran track at the University of Connecticut.
But Cynthia makes sure that Lina knows her hard work is mostly because of her own efforts, and not her family name.
“Everyone could have an opinion of who you are, but at the end of the day, you need to take into account of what you learned, who your coaches are, and you ask yourself ‘Am I doing what is required of me?’” Cynthia said. “I am super proud of her because she’s utilizing her gift in a positive way.
Bridgeton junior Adelina Wilks, left, and her aunt, Bridgeton athletic director Cynthia Wilks, pose for a photo.
Lina’s soccer coach, William Ziefle, in his 12th year at Bridgeton, added to that sentiment and reflected on Lina’s personality as someone who not only wants to win but has the desire to get her teammates involved.
“She’s all about the team,” Ziefle said. “She’s fantastic to coach and makes everyone around her better. She’s always more proud about what we do as a team instead of her own personal gains.”
Lina, who also ran outdoor track as a sophomore, acknowledges the satisfaction of seeing her team’s involvement. It also showed in her statistics, as she totaled 17 to rank among the top 20 in the state.
“I love seeing my team do well and scoring in soccer and basketball,” said Wilks, who earned All-Group 4 honors last fall.
With Wilks scoring 58 of the team’s 83 goals (70 percent) and setting up her teammates, Bridgeton went 13-6 for that first winning season in 25 seasons. It also reached the state playoffs for the first time since 2011.
Lina’s basketball coach, Tom Zoyac, said the best part about her game is her attitude.
“In today’s world that has so much entitlement, [Lina] doesn’t want the attention. She just goes about her business,” Zoyac said.
Wilks averaged 19.9 points last season to lead the Bulldogs, when she also posted team highs in steals (32) and assists (29) over 21 games.
Zoyac is a 2004 graduate and has continued to follow Bridgeton athletics every year and proclaims that Lina could potentially be the top girls athlete to come from the city.
Bridgeton has had some top athletes move on to the professional levels, including Markquese Bell, who has played the past two seasons in the NFL with the Dallas Cowboys. Nadia Davy went on to run track at Louisiana State University and won a bronze medal in the 2004 Olympics for Jamaica.
“Honestly, outside of her family, I am probably her biggest fan,” Zoyac said.
Whether Lina is scoring goals or making that bucket, both of her soccer and basketball coaches say Lina’s work ethic and humbleness will do wonders at the next level.
Bridgeton’s Adelina Wilks (15) moves the ball during a girls basketball game against Buena at Buena Regional High School, Wednesday, Jan. 25, 2023.Joe Warner | For NJ Advance Media
“She goes box-to-box, can play forward or back and looks to score from anywhere,” Ziefle said. “Her attitude is second to none and she brings out the best in all of us.”
“Her mentality, her politeness, her athletic ability -- she’s a lead-by-example type person,” Zoyac said.
Meanwhile, Lina is made aware of all the comments and reflects on continuing the daily work both on and off the field and court.
“It’s definitely something to be proud of, but I try not to think about it too much,” she said. “I still want to be humble, especially since it’s my senior year and then college. I’ll still be competitive and will be a dog on the field but I’m always going to continue to work hard and be in the best shape I can.”
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