Winthrop lacrosse’s Jenna Kasmarik worthy of the billboard

As of Wednesday evening, Winthrop women’s lacrosse star Jenna Kasmarik had not seen the billboard on Interstate 77 that bears her likeness. That likely changed Thursday morning when her team drove past the billboard en route to Cincinnati to play the Bearcats on Friday.

“I’m very excited,” she said Wednesday, while her team practiced. “It’s nice to know that I’m out there.”

Kasmarik has a keen sense of sarcastic humor. She joked that Winthrop coach John Sung promised her when she transferred to the school two years ago from Johns Hopkins that he would make her the “face of the program.”

“Now that’s coming into fruition,” she said, grinning.

In actuality, the billboard is one of a number of roadside advertisements that Winthrop paid for around the Carolinas, and the choice of Kasmarik’s image was random. The sign reads “Winthrop Stands For Opportunity,” which is perfect for her situation.

“I came from Hopkins – it wasn’t the right fit for me in the end – and I was so lucky that John Sung remembered who I was from back in junior year of high school,” said Kasmarik. “He said, ‘you can come here, it’s a new program, and set the bar with the rest of us.’”

Kasmarik has taken full advantage of opportunities offered by the three-year-old Winthrop lacrosse program. She leads the country in goals per game (4.63) and is second in total goals (37). She’s also fifth in points per game and seventh in total points.

Sung’s simple assessment: “She’s hard to guard.”

Kasmarik is from Georgia, a non-traditional lacrosse locale. She played in 20 games during two years at Johns Hopkins, a blue-blooded lacrosse power. She scored 12 goals and dished out two assists, but didn’t fit into the offensive system that the coach used.

“I needed a program where I could be the center of attention,” said Kasmarik, “and I have no problem admitting that.”

Sung remembered Kasmarik from a camp he worked and convinced her to sign with Winthrop. At Hopkins, Kasmarik played primarily behind the goal as a distributor; with Winthrop (7-2) she’s positioned in front, attacking the net with the full force of her alpha-female personality. Last season, Kasmarik was named first team All-Big South after scoring 67 goals in 18 games, fifth-best nationally.

She was selected as the league’s preseason offensive player of the year, and has been as good as predicted. Sung commended Kasmarik for markedly improving her left-handed shooting, making it impossible for defenders to funnel her in the direction of a weaker hand. And she’s also not forcing the action as much, a sign of maturity not lost on the gregarious senior.

“I feel like I’m playing better because of it,” Kasmarik said.

“She just has to be patient,” said Sung. “That’s gonna be a big thing to watch now to the end of the season.”

Crucial for Winthrop’s NCAA tournament chances this season, the Eagles are more balanced offensively. In a lot of cases last season, it was Kasmarik or else on offense; this year, five other Winthrop players have already scored in double digits, led by standout junior Shannon Gallagher’s 18 goals. Freshman Kristen Shriver also has 18 and fellow rookie, Katie Clark, is a goal away from double figures. As a team, Winthrop is fourth in the nation in goals per game.

“Our offense is finally at the point where it’s pretty high-powered,” said Sung. “You have your nights where Jenna has her four or five a game, but there’s a bunch of other kids scoring.”

Kasmarik had scored at least four goals in every game this season until San Diego State shut her out in a 17-7 Aztecs win on March 18. Sung said she missed a bunch of shots that she typically converts. For Winthrop’s coach, the loss couldn’t have come at a better time; the Eagles had ripped off six straight victories, a run of success that creates its own different set of problems.

“You kind of just go into autopilot,” said Sung. “I’m glad it happened. We needed to be humbled and refocused.”

The loss to San Diego State jerked Kasmarik, one of two Winthrop seniors, into a realization. Her face may be the first thing people see when they leave Carowinds and drive north on I-77, and she might lead the country in goals per game, but she’s never played in the NCAA tournament – even at Hopkins. She never even won a state championship in high school. This spring is the last shot.

“What matters now is not what I do individually. I got it in junior year, I got all my stats, I felt much better about myself,” said Kasmarik. “It no longer matters if I can score 60 goals, it matters if we win games. Finally having that realization, well, it’s been really good for me.”

Kasmarik’s top gun level of play, the addition of a freshman recruiting class that Sung said “made our lives a whole lot better,” and the depletion of Big South rivals by graduation – particularly defending champ High Point – means that Winthrop has a chance to grab control of the league and reach the NCAA tournament in the next few years.

“We have a great opportunity to not lose another game until the NCAA tournament,” said Sung, describing an accomplishment that would surely merit another billboard.

This story was originally published March 26, 2015 at 3:46 PM with the headline "Winthrop lacrosse’s Jenna Kasmarik worthy of the billboard."