Florida Gators

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – If the outcome remained in doubt in anyone's mind, those doubts disappeared with 5 minutes, 12 seconds left in the Florida lacrosse team's 13-8 victory Sunday against UConn.

With the Big East Conference regular-season title on the line, the Gators owned a comfortable lead when freshman Lindsey Ronbeck fired an attempt to extend the lead. The shot bounced off a post and directly to midfielder Nicole Graziano.

Graziano, a fifth-year senior nicknamed grandma by her teammates as the oldest player on the team, knew exactly what to do. She slung a shot past Huskies goalkeeper Shannon Nee for the 100th goal of her career to put Florida up 11-4.

Graziano was then summoned to the bench where Gators head coach Amanda O'Leary patted her on the shoulder and her teammates offered a series of hugs.

Grandma had earned some love.

"She's been here for so long. She's a great leader,'' junior attacker Sammi Burgess said. "And she loves playing. You can tell. She's a competitor and she loves to go out there and kick butt every single game. She really motivates all of us to do the same."

The No. 2-ranked Gators will look to Graziano for more of the same when the postseason starts.
 

Florida's victory Sunday earned the program its sixth consecutive conference title. Four of those came as members of the American Lacrosse Conference, and the last two in the Big East. Florida and UConn both entered Sunday's contest with 6-0 conference records, but after a tight first half, it was Graziano who began to create some separation.

Florida led 5-4 as the first half neared a close. That's when Graziano wiggled out of the pack to find some open space in front of UConn's net. Her goal with 4.1 seconds left before halftime provided a huge boost that carried over into the second half with the Gators scoring seven consecutive goals to seize control.

"We were all fired up in the locker room,'' Graziano said.

"It's huge,'' added teammate Sydney DuPre, a fellow senior and one of Graziano's roommates. "We go into the locker room pumped up. This year has been huge for her."

No longer a role player behind former stalwarts such as Kitty Cullen and Shannon Gilroy, Graziano has fared well in the spotlight.

Graziano chose to join older sister Erin at Florida after graduating from West Morris Mendham (N.J.) High. The sisters were teammates during Graziano's first two years at Florida, including her freshman season in 2012 when the Gators advanced to the Final Four.

Graziano was an immediate contributor, scoring 24 goals and adding 12 assists as a freshman and 13 goals, eight assists as a sophomore. She suffered a season-ending injury in the 2014 season opener and had to redshirt. She returned last season and turned in a 40-point season (26 goals, 14 assists).

She definitely saved the best for last, opting to skip Senior Day festivities a year ago and wait for Sunday.

Graziano scored three goals and added an assist in the regular-season finale and now has a career-high 37 goals and career high-tying 14 assists entering the start of the Big East Tournament on May 5 in Washington, D.C.

"She rises to the occasion,'' O'Leary said. "There are high expectations for Nicole. When she makes mistakes, I'll be the first one to yell at her. We just need her. We need her to be at the top of her game and she has been. Just really happy for her to have her 100th goal. She has put a lot of time and effort in to get that."

Graziano was one of 10 seniors honored on Sunday prior to the game. The class owns a 66-14 record over the past four years. Of course, Graziano is the only player on the team still around from the 2012 team that advanced to the national semifinals and held a late lead against Syracuse before it slipped away.

She is ready to make another postseason run in her final season as memorable as the one in her first.

"We knocked off one our goals for the season and it's just really good we were able to do it on Senior Day in front of a large amount of fans and our family,'' she said. "We are just real excited to get this win.

"We're not finished yet. The postseason is where it all happens."

The player in the No. 16 jersey, with a blonde ponytail dripping over her white headband and a shooting glove on her right hand, knows that better than any other Gator.

Grandma speaks from experience.