Josh Sims - Collegiate Career

Collegiate Career

After graduating from Severn, Sims attended Princeton University. He was the first Princeton Student-Athlete to be presented with the NCAA Top VIII Award (the first lacrosse player to be presented with the award since 1983). He was only the fourth Ivy League athlete honored in the award's 27-year history. He was awarded the 1998 & 2000 McLaughlin Award as the best NCAA lacrosse midfielder. He was a first team USILA All-American Team selection in 1998, 1999 and 2000. He was also first team All-Ivy League in 1998, 1999 and 2000. Sims earned the 2000 Men's Ivy League Player of the Year. As a freshman, he was a member of the 1997 team that is regarded as the best in school history with a record number of wins during its 15–0 season. He served as co-captain of the 2000 team. Sims is one of two Princeton Lacrosse two-time Academic All-Americans. Following the 1999 season, he was selected as an at-large second team Academic All-American, and following the 2000 season, he was a first team selection. He was also a 2000 USILA Scholar All-American.

The 1997–2000 teams were 6–0 undefeated outright Ivy League Conference champions. Two of these undefeated league champions won the 1997 and 1998 NCAA Division I Men's Lacrosse Championships, becoming the first team to threepeat since Syracuse from 1988–90 and the first to be recognized to have done so without an NCAA scandal since Johns Hopkins from 1978–80. The 1999 and 2000 teams also earned NCAA Men's Lacrosse Championship invitations, bringing the schools streak to eleven consecutive seasons.

In Sims' first game as a Tiger, he scored the game-winning goal in a 1997 overtime 7–6 victory over Johns Hopkins. Ten years later, ESPN described the goal as a "leaping, behind-the-back" shot, while the Baltimore Sun described the shot by saying that ". . .Sims flicked in a rebound shot blindly behind his back." He was recognized twice in 1997 as Ivy League Rookie of the Week. During the 1998 season, Sims became a scoring threat from midfield as most defenses focused on the All-American trio of Princeton attackmen (Jesse Hubbard, Chris Massey and Jon Hess). In the 1998 NCAA Division I Men's Lacrosse Championship tournament, Sims scored a game-high four goals in the quarterfinal 11–9 victory over Duke and a team-high three goals, including the game-winning goal in the semifinal 11–10 victory against Syracuse. For his efforts, he was named to the All-tournament team. In 1999, he scored a quadruple overtime game-winning goal helping Princeton secure it invitation to the 1999 NCAA Division I Men's Lacrosse Championship tournament with its seventh consecutive victory. In the 2000 NCAA Division I Men's Lacrosse Championship tournament, he posted two goals and two assists in the 10–7 quarterfinal victory over Maryland. He also scored in the 12–11 semifinal victory against Virginia. Sims' two goals made him the only person to score multiple goals for Princeton in the championship game 13–7 loss to Syracuse.