BOSTON, Mass. - The sixth-seeded Simmons College women's lacrosse team will travel to Providence, R.I. on Wednesday, April 22 to take on number three seed Johnson & Wales University at 7:00 p.m. in the Great Northeast Athletic Conference Tournament Quarterfinals.
The Sharks own a 6-8 overall record, including 4-5 in league play, but might arguably be the most dangerous of the visiting teams in the GNAC playoffs this season. In a span of the last 11 days of the regular season, Simmons took both Johnson & Wales and Saint Joseph's College (Maine) to the brink of defeat, before ultimately falling to each foe in overtime. At the time, the Wildcats were undefeated on the season as the upstart Sharks looked to hand them their first loss, leading by three goals with under 90 seconds to play. Simmons looked to do the same to the Monks, who boasted an unblemished conference record as well. The Sharks led Saint Joseph's by four goals with 24 minutes to play in regulation, before the Monks came back and took a two-goal lead. Simmons regrouped and held Saint Joseph's scoreless for the final 10-plus minutes, while netting the final two goals of the half to send the contest into overtime.
Simmons has shown that it has what it takes to beat the best teams in the league and over the past month has been a much better team than it was in the first three weeks of 2015. The Sharks are 5-3 since March 25 and two of their losses were in overtime. Simmons has consistently clicked on offense as well, netting 10 or more goals in each of its last nine matches.
Johnson & Wales is 12-2 with a 7-2 record in conference play. The Wildcats began the season by winning their first 10 contests and their only losses are to the top two teams (Saint Joseph's and Lasell College) in the league standings.
The Sharks played JWU in Providence on April 8, where the teams played within two goals of each other for the first 58-plus minutes until junior midfielder Greer Gilbert (Falmouth, Mass.) gave Simmons a 15-12 lead with 1:46 to play. Johnson & Wales remained poised and scored three goals in 72 seconds, including a goal with one tick left on the clock, from first year attacker Gabrielle Vasile (Milford, Mass.), to knot the match at 15-15. The Wildcats netted the first three goals of the extra period and came away with an 18-16 triumph. Sophomore midfielder Lydia Knapp (Glens Falls, N.Y.) led all players with 11 points on eight goals and three assists for Johnson & Wales, while Gilbert finished with six goals to lead the Sharks. Senior goalie Genevieve Giampietro (Meriden, Conn.) made eight saves for the home team, while senior Crystal Derosier (Kingston, Mass.) turned away a season-high 17 shots for Simmons.
Despite the records, the teams are fairly even, statistically. One of the Wildcats' strengths, which has proven to be something that the Sharks need to improve on, is taking care of the ball. Johnson & Wales committed a conference-low 211 turnovers in 14 games, compared to Simmons' total of 300. However, the Sharks reversed this trend when the teams met face-to-face, forcing the Wildcats into 21 miscues, while turning the ball over themselves 17 times.
Gilbert has been one of the best all-around players in the GNAC this season for the Sharks, enjoying a career year that's seen her tally 73 points on 51 goals and 22 assists to stand as the only player in the league to rank among the top three in the conference in all three categories. The Captain has been one of the most consistent players on the squad, netting at least one goal in every match this season, including multiple markers in each of her last 12 matches. Gilbert has been outstanding in free position situations, converting 67% of her opportunities with 14 goals on 21 shots. She has also become a very good facilitator for Simmons, notching two or more assists in five of her last seven outings. Simmons has seen offensive possessions begin and end with Gilbert with the midfielder winning a team-high 72 draws to place third among league leaders. Joining Gilbert in the offensive zone is senior attacker Stephanie Oliveri (Waltham, Mass.) and first year middie Kasey Fries (Bridgewater, Mass.). Oliveri piled up 48 points on 31 goals and 17 assists in 14 matches and has been one of the team's top scorers in all four seasons with at least 40 points in each of her campaigns with the Sharks and has 201 for her career. Fries has established herself as a legitimate scoring threat in her first season of college lacrosse with 28 goals. The midfielder has been efficient, owning a 51.9% shooting percentage and has recorded at least one point in all but one match this year. The rookie netted 23 goals in a seven-game span from March 23 to April 11, including four goals on four occasions.
Junior Ashley Sheehan (North Attleboro, Mass.) has been solid all season for Simmons, matching Gilbert for the team-lead with 23 caused turnovers, while picking up 46 draw controls. The midfielder has kind of flown under the radar on the offensive end for the Sharks with 25 points, including 18 goals, but was certainly visible vs. Saint Joseph's with five goals on nine shots. Junior attacker Alexa Faria (Cumberland, R.I.) has emerged as a reliable scoring threat with 18 goals on the season, including a dozen in her last seven games. She ended the season with five markers in her final two matches. Despite missing three games due to injury, junior Captain Alexia Malone Oliver (Bristol, R.I.) has been a key all-around contributor for Simmons, netting 13 goals in 11 contests, while picking up 22 ground balls, winning 11 draw and causing nine turnovers.
Senior defender Symonne Fontenot (Portsmouth, N.H.) and first year Gabrielle Klane (Franklin, Mass.) have locked down the defense for the Sharks, combining to cause 33 turnovers, including 18 from Fontenot. The senior registered multiple caused turnovers seven times, while Klane caused more than one turnover on four occasions. Fontenot also came up with 39 ground balls to place second on the team.
Derosier finished the regular season with a 43.4% save percentage and a 12.62 goals against average in 856 minutes of play. The senior Captain was outstanding in her last four outings of the year, stopping 51 shots to post a 52.6% save mark.
Knapp is the go-to scorer for Johnson & Wales, netting 47 goals to go with 20 assists for 67 points. The sophomore has dominated the draw this year, winning 97 controls to lead the conference, while also picking up 32 ground balls and causing 22 turnovers. She's flanked by first year attacker Raquel Pederzani (Coventry, R.I.) (26) and junior attacker Marissa Hart (Cohoes, N.Y.) (25), who have combined to score 51 goals. Junior midfielder Jessica Schmell (Coopersburg, Pa.) and Vasile have also been offensive threats with 20 and 16 goals, respectively. Giampietro has served as the Wildcats' primary goalie, logging nearly 652 minutes in 13 matches, while owning a 43.2% save percentage and an 8.84 goals against average.