JMU Lax to Host Stanford in NCAA Tourney

JMU Woman’s Lacrosse coach Shelley Klaes-Bawcombe led the Dukes to a CAA Championship this past Saturday at the JMU Lacrosse Complex. It capped a CAA season that saw Shelley capture her second CAA Coach of the Year Award. Ironically enough, the 10-6 victory came over Hofstra, the team which Klaes-Bawcombe coached from 2002-2006 after completing an outstanding career at JMU as a player from 1993-1997. While at Hofstra, Shelley won her first CAA Coach of the Year award in 2005.

The win was a school record 16th on the season (against only 2 losses) and the team’s 9th in a row. It also secured the CAA’s automatic bid to the NCAA tournament. The Dukes were lead by senior goalkeeper Morgan Kelley, who was named national player of the week after racking up 12 saves in the CAA tournament. Kelley was also named to the All Tournament team along with junior Mary Kate Lomady, who had a hat trick in the final, redshirt senior Kim Griffin, and sophomore Cally Chakrian. It is JMU’s 7th CAA Championship, but first since 2006.

As a reward for their outstanding season, JMU has been given a #5 seed for the 16 team NCAA tournament and will host Stanford this Saturday in round 1. Stanford is a newcomer on the national woman’s lacrosse scene and a relative outsider at this mostly East Coast party. The Cardinal have plenty of ties back East though. They played CAA teams, beating Hofstra and losing to Towson. Head Coach Amy Bokker spent 12 years coaching in the CAA at George Mason and American, where she to won CAA Coach of the Year. Stanford Assistant Coach Brook McKenzie has only been on the Stanford staff since last year, but is about as suited as any coach in the country to get a team prepared for playing at JMU. McKenzie played her collegiate lacrosse at the greatest school on the planet. That’s right, she was a member of 3 JMU Dukes CAA Championship teams during her 4 years on campus. There is some kind of a 6-degrees of CAA lax thing going on here.

Saturday’s match-up will be the 3rd ever meeting between JMU and Stanford. JMU leads the series 2-0 with one goal victories in 2007 and 2008. The Dukes should be favored, but it’s still going to be a big test for a team with no previous NCAA tournament experience. Gametime is 1:00 and tickets are available for $5.