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In its regular season matchup with Virginia on March 23, Syracuse fell behind 5-1 in less than 10 minutes. SU clawed back in the fourth quarter to win 15-14, but it was far from a complete performance.

In the second rendition between the two sides in the Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament semifinals Friday, the Orange came out of the gate scorching. An 8-0 first quarter and continued dominance in the opening minutes of the second had Syracuse well in front, prompting a running clock from the 9:31 mark of the second quarter through the rest of the game.

“Everyone on the team had electric energy,” SU attack Emma Tyrrell told ACC Network postgame. “Everyone came out strong. We knew what we wanted to accomplish this game and I think that’s what we did.”

Riding its hot start and its largest halftime lead of the season (12), No. 1 seed Syracuse (14-4, 8-1 ACC) cruised to a 19-4 victory over No. 5 seed Virginia (14-4, 6-3 ACC). SU’s offense tallied 19 goals and its defense tied a season-best four goals allowed. With the win, the Orange advanced to their first ACC Tournament championship since 2021 and the first under third-year head coach Kayla Treanor.

“We were ready to go. These kids are really focused and dialed in and here to win a championship,” Treanor said postgame.

Using a significant advantage in the draw circle — Syracuse ranked eighth in the nation compared to Virginia’s 44th, according to Lacrosse Reference — Kate Mashewske won the first two, giving SU early possessions.

After working the ball around, Olivia Adamson forced a shooting position foul on UVA. Adamson elected to pass out but she quickly gained the ball back, scoring the first goal of the game. Thirteen seconds later, she doubled the SU lead with a behind-the-back goal.

SU’s top attacks quickly got to work with Adamson. Virginia’s zone defense left Emma Ward alone at X, allowing her to free up her hands more than normal and use her elite facilitating skills. She first fed Tyrrell, who brushed past her defender and fired across her body to extend the lead to three. Ward then scored a goal of her own, forcing UVA head coach Sonia LaMonica to call a timeout at the 10:05 mark.

The Orange kept their foot on the gas pedal throughout the first quarter as Natalie Smith added two goals in 65 seconds. Then, Emma Muchnick and Savannah Sweitzer each added goals.

Delaney Sweitzer and Syracuse’s defense had limited action as the Orange closed the quarter with a shutout. It was their first time allowing zero goals in the opening frame since its matchup with Virginia Tech on March 9.

As LaMonica was interviewed after the first quarter by ACC Network, all she could do was laugh, stunned at the performance against her squad.

Syracuse attack Tyrrell avoids a Virginia defender to initiate an offensive possesion.Courtesy of the Atlantic Coast Conference

Virginia responded by switching from its zone defense to a man-to-man set, but the change didn’t do much as SU continued to pile goals on.

UVA got on the board with a pass from Madison Alaimo to Morgan Schwab at the 13:42 mark of the second quarter. But SU responded with six straight goals. During the run, Tyrrell scored two goals in a 13-second span. The first caused a running clock to start just 21 minutes into the contest.

Dominating possessions and swallowing up UVA’s attack limited the Cavaliers’ attack throughout the second quarter. Over the last 10:21 of the half, SU didn’t allow a shot. Meanwhile, Ward and Maddy Baxter added goals to push the lead to 12 to end the half.

Virginia attempted to claw back with isolated goals in the second half but Syracuse continued to add on to its total. Four different players recorded hat tricks as the draw unit posted a 22-of-25 performance and the defense held UVA to four goals, leading to a smooth 15-goal win to ride into the conference championship.

Now, Treanor is just one win away from her first ACC title as a head coach.

“We’re here to win it,” Treanor told ACC Network postgame. “I’m excited about the opportunity to be playing on Sunday. That was our goal. So it’ll be a good one.”

Published on April 26, 2024 at 7:21 pm

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