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ITHACA, N.Y. — A 5-1 first quarter performance from Syracuse seemed to be the fast start it was looking for after notching its season high 22 goals just three days prior. Emma Tyrrell tallied three goals and Delaney Sweitzer had faced just three shots all quarter. But that was just the beginning for the Orange.

A 6-1 second quarter put Syracuse well in front at the half and helped it cruise through an uneventful second half. The Orange never trailed and allowed a season-low four goals.

In its last nonconference game, despite rainy conditions throughout the game, No. 3 Syracuse (10-3, 6-0 Atlantic Coast Conference) dominated Cornell (7-4, 2-1 Ivy League), defeating the Big Red 17-4 for its seventh straight win. The Orange controlled the game from the start, setting season highs in draw (83.3%) and save percentage (66.7%).

“Overall I was proud of it because it’s cold and it’s wet and rainy and they came out and played well right away,” SU head coach Kayla Treanor said after the victory.

Kate Mashewske flipped the opening draw to the left, collected it and quickly dished to Tyrrell. Entering the contest, Tyrrell averaged 4.4 goals per game in her last five games. She quickly turned upfield and split through the defense before getting fouled. On the ensuing free position, Tyrrell beat Big Red goalie Ellie Horner low.

Minutes later, after multiple SU forced turnovers, Tyrrell found the back of the net once again, continuing her hot streak. Tyrrell executed on another free position with less than two minutes to play in the opening quarter, completing her hat trick as SU led 4-1.

After praising the graduate student following a five goal performance Saturday versus Louisville, Treanor once again complimented her star after Tuesday’s win. Though Tyrrell started strong, Cornell limited her throughout the second half by face guarding.

A goal from Savannah Sweitzer prior and Meghan Rode’s seventh goal of the season with nine seconds left in the quarter had the Orange up four.

Early on the defensive side, Syracuse overcame absences from two of its mainstays to force early turnovers. Junior McKenzie Olsen and sophomore Julia Basciano started in place of Natalie Smith and Katie Goodale. Smith and Goodale didn’t travel to the game due to family matters, according to a SU Athletics spokesperson.

Olsen started at the left corner — where Goodale usually plays — as Basciano along with Emma Muchnick filled Smith’s shoes.

Still, the Orange kept Cornell out of the net until just over two minutes remaining in the first quarter. Delaney turned away 2-of-3 shots she faced and the SU defensive unit forced five turnovers.

“Obviously there was a lot of different girls in and people were in different positions,” SU defender Kaci Benoit said postgame. “It really was a testament to how adaptable (we can be).”

After setting the program record for career draw controls three days prior, Mashewske dominated on draws, helping SU win 6-of-7 in the first quarter and 20-of-24 overall. Her performance in the circle gave the SU attack extended opportunities.

Even with Mashewske’s record setting mark, she’s posted mixed results throughout the season. Treanor said the coaching staff has talked to Kate about having more consistency from game to game. Today’s showing, after a strong one Saturday, was a step in the right direction.

“(We have been) talking to her about how she can be elite and she can be great all the time,” Treanor said postgame. “For us, this is two back-to-back great games for her.”

With three different goal scorers in the first half, Syracuse’s attack earned added contributions in the second. First it was a Maddy Baxter goal. Then following a goal from Big Red leading scorer Josie Vogel, Olivia Adamson got on the board after collecting a rebound on a shot from Joely Caramelli.

Payton Rowley scored followed by a finish from Emma Ward. Through nine goals, Syracuse had seven different goal scorers, a balanced attack that the Cornell defense had little answer for.

Despite committing a plethora of turnovers — tying a season-high 19 — the Orange often quickly gained back possession. Syracuse entered the game ranked 67th in the nation in time-of-possession, according to Lacrosse Reference. And though Cornell was ranked well above SU — ranked 28th — it rarely held the ball throughout the first half, tallying just two goals and seven shots on goal compared to SU’s 11 and 16.

Two more goals from Tyrrell and Adamson helped the Orange close the half on a 5-0 run to lead by nine at the break.

In the second half, with SU up big already, the scoring plateaued. The Orange defense held Cornell scoreless until just under seven minutes to play in the second, a 17 minute drought going back to the second quarter. Vogel tallied her second.

Though the Orange didn’t get much going offensively in the third quarter either. Savannah notched her second goal of the game and eighth in the last three games with an unassisted goal after emerging from X.

Syracuse’s attack capitalized on many one-on-one opportunities throughout the matchup. On its first 12 goals, just one — Baxter’s to open the second quarter — was assisted. The rest came off of attacks largely going to work by themselves.

“I would give a lot of credit to Cornell for that quarter,” Treanor said. “But I think we played really well for three quarters and just had struggles in the third.”

Even with Syracuse’s slowed attack in the second half, the defense continued its dominant day. Delaney stood strong while the suffocating zone defense repeatedly forced Cornell into late shot clock situations. Though the Orange lost the third quarter 2-1, the damage was already done and a 5-0 fourth quarter put the game away for good.

Nonconference play has been an up-and-down battle for SU in 2024. Following a 1-3 start to out-of-conference play, the Orange rebounded with three straight, extending its win streak to seven games and finishing nonconference play 4-3. Its final rendition versus Cornell was yet another dominant showing.

“Today the game was all about us and trying to execute what we’ve been working on,” Treanor said. “At this point this season we’re not really seeing anything that we haven’t seen before. So just trying to do the things that we do well.”

Published on April 2, 2024 at 5:30 pm

Contact Aiden at: amstepan@syr.edu | @AidenStepansky