Simmons Basketball finished an impressive and historic 2008-09 season, in which they established a new high for second-most wins in a season with an overall record of 17-8, one shy of the most wins (18), and a Great Northeast Athletic Conference record of 8-4. The Sharks made a tremendous end of the season push, putting together a string of six consecutive victories, including a huge win on the road against Johnson & Wales after trailing by double digits at the half. The Sharks would then go 2-2 over the last 2 weeks of the season to make it to the GNAC Tournament as the sixth seed. Simmons ended their postseason run with a loss to Norwich University in the GNAC Quarterfinals on the road.
The Sharks began the first part of the season with a record of 5-1, tying the 2nd best start in program history before winter break. The team traveled to sunny Orlando, Florida during winter break to compete in the Land of Magic Classic. Upon their return to Boston, the team won some key non-conference games as they prepared for league play. The Sharks opened up GNAC play in a game against defending GNAC Tournament Champion Emmanuel College. The game was intense and the Sharks played well, but unfortunately came up short by five points.
"I know we surpassed expectations," said Head Coach Tony Price. "The coaches picked us to finish seventh in the conference during the preseason. "We would have loved to make it to the final game. Every team had to prepare for us and we got their best game. We controlled our destiny, and unfortunately we couldn't close things out down the stretch to secure a higher seed for the playoffs.
"This season the team learned a lot about coming to play hard each night, and the margin of success and failure was razor thin."
Simmons achieved quite a few career milestones during the season. Coach Price won his 100th career game in a thrilling come-from-behind victory against Suffolk University. Junior forward Stephanie Fox (West Springfield, Mass.) became only the third player in Simmons basketball history to be named to the GNAC All-Conference First Team. Junior point guard Julianna Eagles (Quincy, Mass.) scored her 1,000th career point, and senior guard Lauren Kreckie (Braintree, Mass.) became the program's all-time leader in steals (176).
Senior guard Sarah Clayton (Falmouth, Mass.) rebounded from a sub par junior season to recapture her form, helping to lead the team to some big wins on the road and finishing her career at Simmons with 845 points. Junior forward Aubree Giarrosso (Rockport, Mass.) was a steady performer inside, and for her efforts she was named to the GNAC All-Conference Sportsmanship Team.
The conclusion of the season marks the end of the collegiate careers of senior captains Kreckie and Clayton. Both left lasting impressions on the program record books and had wonderful careers filled with many achievements. Their graduation will be felt for several seasons to come. "Sarah and Lauren's presence will be missed on and off the court. It won't be the same to look out onto the court and not see #34 and #35 out there," said Price. "As a coach I took it for granted that they would always be there—you simply can't replace the intangibles they brought each night, they were competitors who represented Simmons like champions. Their departure leaves a huge void, and the coaching staff is very interested to see who will step up to fill their shoes."
Sophomore Morgan Johnson (Waterbury, Conn.) rounded into form after sitting out the first semester, and showed flashes of excitement that made her a fan favorite as a freshman. This season also saw the emergence of a few new faces—freshman guard Jessica Thomas (Sandwich, Mass.), and freshman forwards Alex Acloque (Randolph, Mass.) and Brittany Langford (Worcester, Mass.) played pivotal roles down the stretch to help the team win 17 games. Coach Price credits the consistency of the rest of his roster, and notes that his athletes each stepped up to contribute when called upon.
"This season was by far the most competitive in GNAC women's basketball," said Price. "The other schools have gotten stronger and more talented, so landing some talented recruits and focusing on the development of the younger players on this year's roster are critical if we are to make a serious run next season."