Bruisers' Phillips set for Lindenwood

GPS senior Savannah Phillips will be signing scholarship papers next month to play lacrosse for NCAA Division II member Lindenwood University in St. Charles, Mo.

A former tennis player who took up lacrosse just in time to join the Bruisers varsity as a freshman, Phillips had 18 goals in four games this season going into Friday night's visit to Pope John Paul II in Nashville.

She was pulled into the sport by her brother, who she said would make her hold a boy's lacrosse stick and be "a moving target" as he worked on his skills.

"She was an impact player from her first day on the field," GPS coach Caroline Carlin said Friday, "with her spontaneity and unparalleled work ethic. She's been an offensive force the last two years, definitely a keystone in our attack."

Phillips wound up picking Lindenwood over Division I Stetson.

"I feel the coaches are like my coaches at GPS, and the team is a solid group of girls who like to do everything together -- a sorority of their own," she said. "And I love Missouri. I'm more of a city girl than a Florida girl."