Devyn Flaherty first caught softball coaches’ eyes when she was the Skills MVP at a camp run by former Georgia Tech head coach Sharon Perkins.

The Florida native outshined high school-aged athletes—and she was all of 10 years old at the time.

That was three years ago and the attention—and softball development—has only improved for the shortstop/utility player from Sarasota, Fla. who is rapidly becoming one of the most talked about young players in the game.

Devyn is just a few days into her eighth grade year at Sarasota Middle School and yet is hearing from SEC and Pac-12 schools already as well as many of the programs in-state.

“It’s very flattering,” her father, Mark, says of the major college attention, “but it’s a hard enough decision for a junior or senior in high school so we’re not in a hurry. Still, we may have to decide sooner than later the way it’s going.”

Softball isn’t the only sport Devyn excels at—she’s also a standout soccer defender and made it several tryouts deep vying for a spot on a prestigious U.S. Soccer team. The multi-sport star plays soccer from September through May and squeezes in softball in the fall when she came as well as during the summer.

And if that isn’t enough, the 2019 grad is also a competitive beach volleyball player, following in the shoes of her 15-year-old brother Connor who has played the sport in tournaments across the nation as well.

It’s not like they have to go far to practice on the beach—the family lives 15 minutes from the Gulf Coast.

Still, Devyn feels softball—which she’s played since she was five years old—is her future sport if only for the fact that she’s quickly becoming a nationally recognized player.

“It’s headed that way,” she says of softball being her primary sport, “but you never know. It’s weird when I think of all the attention I’m getting and I’m still a year away from high school, but I’m not thinking about the recruiting or college stuff. I’m just playing to have fun.”

Her middle school doesn’t have a softball team and since Devyn plays up with and against players at the high school level already she’s able to avoid some conflicts with soccer and softball going head-to-head in the spring.

Currently, she’s on the Team Mizuno-Merrill squad that was formerly Sarasota Heat.

In soccer, however, she plays against athletes her own age and, because she’s a tough competitive who always looks out for her teammates, she’s picked up the nickname “Mama Bear.”

“She’s a leader on the soccer field,” adds her father, “and opponents know you don’t mess with Devyn’s teammates or you’ll have to deal with her.”

One reason the honor student is intimidating is her size: she’s already 5-foot-9 ½ and says she’s always been among the tallest in her age group.

“I like to think of myself as a leader in softball too,” she continues, “although I’m not as vocal on the softball field.”

She doesn’t have to be—the 13-year-old lets her actions speak loudly for her. Shortly after her standout performance at the Perkins camp in the summer of 2011, the Flaherty’s started getting tracked down by college coaches. By the winter of 2011-12, Devyn saw what was happening.

“I didn’t realize it at the Perkins Camp that summer, but my dad starting getting college coaches talking to him. When he finally told me about this, I thought, ‘Wow, I’m actually good at this!’”

A tall, lefty slapper with 2.7 home-to-first speed, Devyn usually gets up around 6:45 am and collapses into bed around 10 pm each night after school, soccer or softball practice, homework and dinner.

“I really don’t have any hobbies,” she laughs. “Sports pretty much take up all of my time.”

“It’s a juggle,” admits her father. “It’s always softball or soccer and if there is a free weekend she’ll look for a beach volleyball tournament somewhere in the area. There always seems to be one.”

Besides keeping her out of trouble, sports also keeps Devyn and her entire family on the move.

Both parents were athletes—her father played basketball and could have done so in college but focused on academics while her mother played volleyball and ran track in college.

Besides herself and her older brother, the baby of the family is 11-year-old McKenna who is following in her sister’s footsteps of playing both softball and volleyball.

Devyn also wants to follow in her parents’ footsteps in another way—both mom and dad are lawyers and she admits she can see herself being a lawyer as well.

“I can envision myself in law school someday too,” she says. “I just want to be able to help others as I can.”

Spoken like a true Mama Bear.