Former Nazareth Standout Simoneau Competed in MLL Title Game
Former Nazareth lacrosse star Drew Simoneau has effectively carved his niche in Major League Lacrosse.
Simoneau's skills were on full display Saturday when the Dallas Rattlers fell to the Denver Outlaws, 16-12, in the MLL Championship game.
Simoneau, a 2015 Nazareth graduate, works as a physical therapist at Sports PT of New York in Camillus, N.Y. for his day job. On the side, he's spent significant amounts of time this summer at the airport commuting to Dallas to ply his trade for the first-place Rattlers, who moved to Dallas this year after spending 17 seasons in Rochester.
"It's been a good ride," Simoneau said of his second pro season. "There have been a lot of travel issues, so it was difficult to get into a good rhythm at first. But overall, Dallas has been a fun place to play lacrosse."
For those familiar with him at Nazareth, Simoneau's pro success is not a surprise. He was a three-time All-American and three-time Empire 8 Conference Player of the Year who helped the Golden Flyers to two conference titles and a pair of NCAA Tournament appearances. He made his mark by winning face-offs -- lots of them -- and has transferred that skill set to the Rattlers, who finished first in the MLL regular-season standings with an 11-3 record and advanced to the championship game with a 15-12 win over the New York Lizards. Simoneau figured prominently in that result by winning 24 of 31 face-offs, collecting 10 ground balls and scoring a goal.
Overall, Simoneau has taken every single face-off for the Rattlers this season, going 236-for-427 (55.2%) and grabbing a team-best 107 ground balls.
"It's always a goal to be above 50 percent," he said. "It's more significant here because the talent level is so good."
Simoneau's success prompted a recent story in US Lacrosse magazine above that talks about his humble ascent from Division III Nazareth to the brink of a professional championship.
"It couldn't happen to a better person," said Nazareth Coach Rob Randall. "Drew has tremendous work ethic who serves as a great role model for the game of lacrosse."
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