Jacksonville Edges Liberty in OT to Win Sixth Straight Atlantic Sun Title

Brianna Samuels’ lefty shovel shot in overtime lifted Jacksonville to its sixth-straight Atlantic Sun title with a 14-13 win over top-seed Liberty.

THE SHOVEL SHOT WINNER @JAX_WLAX takes the @ASUNLacrosse championship in overtime thanks to Brianna Samuels. pic.twitter.com/6bzRw4f6DS

— USA Lacrosse Magazine (@USALacrosseMag) May 6, 2023

The goal was the third of the day for Samuels, who also added an assist.

Jacksonville has now won nine of 10 ASUN championships and four straight against Liberty. But for the first time in five years, Jacksonville was not the regular-season champion or No. 1 seed. Liberty claimed both of those and beat Jacksonville for the first time in program history, 12-10, on April 1.

The Dolphins flipped the script with an NCAA Tournament automatic qualifier at stake in a one-bid league, denying the Flames a chance at dancing for the first time.

Sarah Elms tallied game-highs of five goals and six points, while Grace Hobson added three goals and three assists. Molly Brock’s 11 draw controls led the day.

Cami Merkel paced Liberty with four goals and one assist.

Three-straight goals from Elms to close the first quarter gave the Dolphins the early 5-2 lead. The Dolphins again went ahead by three goals, 7-4, when Grace Hobson scored at 8:09 of the second frame. But Liberty ended the second frame with five-straight goals, punctuated by back-to-back free position scores from Kelly Scott that gave the Flames a 9-7 halftime edge.

Jacksonville recovered, outscoring Liberty 5-1 in the third quarter to go in front 12-10. Mackenzie Lehman brought the Flames within 12-11 early in the fourth quarter, but an Elms free position goal with eight minutes left put the margin back at two, 13-11. Merkel got the next two for Liberty on player-up opportunities, tying the game at 13-13 when she converted a free position shot at 6:13.

With less than four minutes to play, Hobson drove in traffic and drew a foul. But she couldn’t get the look she wanted on a free position, retreating to X. Hannah Davis knocked an errant pass outside the lines with time running out on the shot clock. The Dolphins were there for the backup but had nothing going, turning it over on a shot clock violation.

Liberty cleared the ball and called timeout, but Molly Brock forced an Olivia Glaze turnover, and Hailey Blachly retrieved the ball from the scrum. Elms’ shot went wide on the other end. Jordan Sheive had a look in front, but Paige Pagano made the stop with 47 seconds left.

The Flames would get another chance, courtesy of a disruptive ride. Lizzy Ferguson caused a Lauren Ellis turnover. Merkel had a shot on a last-second free position, but it hit the post as time expired.

In the first half of the first overtime period, Lauren Craft had a free position chance with 1.8 seconds left that went over the crossbar. The teams switched sides, and Kaila Stasulli won the draw for the Dolphins. Forty seconds in, Hobson found Samuels inside, and the junior converted with flair.