Syracuse

[OuttaNowhereWregget]

I don't know, may have been the deftly executed tomahawk check.

Speaking of which... Does a technical term exist for this style of stick check?

[tothedraw]

I would call it a slash.

[wlaxphan20]

I'm struggling with how a super talented team like Cuse squanders 3 point leaders with only minutes to play in back to back games against Top 10 opponents. Especially when they were in complete control of both games and had demonstrated for 55+ minutes that they were the much better team. I know it is a combination of factors but what does everyone think the primary issues are. To make it even harder to figure out, I personally think they are much better than both teams. If they played each team 10 times I think they win at least 8. Is it discipline, decision making, leadership, execution, coaching, goal keeping ...

I definitely didn’t wouldn’t have said cuse was in complete control of that game in the first half. The game was tied 6 different times with 3 lead changes (4 if you include the game winner). 3rd quarter they made some good adjustments and took over. I don’t think NU responded to their adjustments well either. I’d agree with that statement about the ND game though, they took the lead half way through the first half and held it until ND tied it with under 20 seconds left.

Either way, they had taken control in both games at some point and lost it. I just don’t think game management/awareness has been a strength for Syracuse for a long time. And I think from your list at the end it’s a bit of everything. If they don’t figure out the goalie situation I don’t think they make it to championship weekend.

[OuttaNowhereWregget]

That's a great photograph of Sam Swart right there, and wearing Emma Ward's jersey too which is cool and interesting at the same time.

[8meterPA]

I would call it a slash.

correct, and a YC should have been called

[Bart]

I would call it a slash.

correct, and a YC should have been called

Seems like that type of swing has been called more this year than in the past. As it should.

[Laxallday]

Either way, they had taken control in both games at some point and lost it. I just don’t think game management/awareness has been a strength for Syracuse for a long time. And I think from your list at the end it’s a bit of everything. If they don’t figure out the goalie situation I don’t think they make it to championship weekend.
[/quote]

I actually had a similar observation on game management in that game Tuesday. Up 3 4:30 or so to play, I made a mental note about the Syracuse possession where they took the clock down to 11 seconds before going to goal. Ultimately they had a clock violation I believe. Coaches have very different philosophies on keep doing what's working and stay aggressive or pass it around and squeeze the clock. They almost pulled it off but I had one observation...Syracuse is best when playing aggressive and NU was winning most of the draws in the 4th quarter. Hindsight is 20/20, but I would've looked to score another with that amount of time left and take my chances with a 4 goal lead. KT decided to squeeze the clock. Aggessive offensive teams sometimes struggle with turning off the spigot and this is sometimes what can happen. Thank the shot clock for this outcome.

[laxer12]

Has anyone heard any status updates regarding the injury of Sierra?

[OuttaNowhereWregget]

Don't look now folks but in less than a fortnight (after a Syracuse Pitt stop) the Orange welcome the Tar Heels into the Dome for a 2pm Saturday nationally televised (ESPNU) battle. Don't think it will be much of an evenly matched tussle. I don't think Carolina will take their foot off the gas when they start taking over the game.

[wlaxphan20]

Don't look now folks but in less than a fortnight (after a Syracuse Pitt stop) the Orange welcome the Tar Heels into the Dome for a 2pm Saturday nationally televised (ESPNU) battle. Don't think it will be much of an evenly matched tussle. I don't think Carolina will take their foot off the gas when they start taking over the game.

For whatever reason, I think Carolina is going to struggle in the Dome. They haven't played there since 2018, and I think this game is going to stay close for longer than one would expect before Carolina eventually pulls away. I have nothing concrete to back this prediction up other than a gut feeling.

[DMac]

What's the over-under on the attendance number?
Last night's big game drew fewer than 500.
That's really sad.

[wlaxphan20]

What's the over-under on the attendance number?
Last night's big game drew fewer than 500.
That's really sad.

True, it was a weeknight though. I think the attendance can pretty easily double that. I'd expect a lot of youth, club, and HS programs. There are also a decent number of UNC wlax alumni from the Upstate NY area that I would expect to attend as well if they are still local, or at least for their family to attend.

[OuttaNowhereWregget]

Don't look now folks but in less than a fortnight (after a Syracuse Pitt stop) the Orange welcome the Tar Heels into the Dome for a 2pm Saturday nationally televised (ESPNU) battle. Don't think it will be much of an evenly matched tussle. I don't think Carolina will take their foot off the gas when they start taking over the game.

For whatever reason, I think Carolina is going to struggle in the Dome. They haven't played there since 2018, and I think this game is going to stay close for longer than one would expect before Carolina eventually pulls away. I have nothing concrete to back this prediction up other than a gut feeling.

You may prove to be correct. Wouldn’t surprise me.

[OuttaNowhereWregget]

A little walk down memory lane for Syracuse fans to some past postseason glory:

https://www.instagram.com/tv/CcEPARogKa ... MyMTA2M2Y=

[wlaxphan20]

A little walk down memory lane for Syracuse fans to some past postseason glory:

https://www.instagram.com/tv/CcEPARogKa ... MyMTA2M2Y=

Also a very good example of why the stick drop was introduced and why the post-goal stick checks will likely not be going anywhere.


**Syracuse fans: I am not implying that Alyssa Murray played with an illegal stick. Pulling the strings after scoring was common amongst all teams and all players - definitely not exclusive to Syracuse or Murray. What she did was legal at the time. This was just a very good example**

[njbill]

Not only was pulling the strings after a goal pretty common, it was 100% legal unless done after a stick check request had been made. In fact, it was smart to do.

Almost identical thing happened in an NJ playoff game a few years later. The girl who pulled her strings took some crap on LaxPower, but she absolutely did the right thing.

[OuttaNowhereWregget]

Syracuse was my first love when I discovered women's lacrosse. I just happened upon the sport when I was bored one day and looking around the nifty new espn3 website. I took my boys to a Boston Cannons game at Nickerson field some years previous and wasn't impressed by it. But coming across Kayla Treanor and the Orange back in 2014 during the final 4 was a revelation. I was knocked out immediately by Treanor's fantastic talent and athleticism, and intrigued by the game in general. I became hooked on the sport from that day forward. For the first few years of watching women's lacrosse, I only had eyes for Syracuse. My favorite players apart from #21 were Halle Majorana, Riley Donahue, Nicole Levy, Taylor Gait, Mary Rahal, Erica Bodt, et al. The first 5 women's lacrosse clips* I uploaded were from Syracuse games back in 2016--two Treanor goals, two Levy goals and one Donahue goal. Before Charlotte North started ripping goals from the 8 meter, Levy was doing it for Syracuse. I used to laugh out loud with delight whenever she would launch one of her lasers past opposing goaltenders. Far and away, they were my favorite team. But then I discovered Northwestern and fell in love with them too. Then the Ronbeck/Pirreca sisters Florida Gators, etc. etc. As more and more games began to be streamed, I was exposed to more and more teams. And then I discovered (sigh) Boston College, but that's another story. Back to my history with Syracuse, I continued to root for them and enjoy them until all my favorite players started graduating. The new classes coming in didn't do anything for me. Then a few more undisclosed things happened** that made me start rooting against them.

**There are all kinds of reasons to root against teams in sports. Could be someone busts a move in traffic and after a nasty exchange you notice they have a Canisius wlax bumper sticker on their vehicle. Maybe the coach of a given team was snotty and dismissive of a parent and their child when they went for an interview. Could be an old girlfriend/boyfriend who spurned you went to a given college. You get the picture. Lots of people hate-watch teams for myriad different reasons. It's very common in sports. Who knows, one day I might be a Syracuse fan again. One day I might start hate-watching BC. Case in point is the Boston Red Sox. I was loyal to them until ownership arranged for manager Terry Francona to be smeared out of town. Now I root against them always, even when they're playing the hated Yankees. So--that's my history with Syracuse. Not all the details are included, but enough to get a vague idea of why I now root against the Orange.

* https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLQgk ... Xn5bzzlgAe

[OuttaNowhereWregget]

Nothing really screams at you from the stat sheet (link below) from yesterday's wimpy showing by Syracuse in a 15-4 slapdown at the hands (or should I say claws) of the Wildcats. They lost in some areas but won in others--nothing dramatic. What was dramatic however was what Syracuse looked like on the field vs Northwestern. No heart, no fight, no clue. That's on coach. You show up like that for a semifinal against a very beatable opponent in the Wildcats? Not a good grade for Treanor or the team on what turned out to be the final exam for 2022. Lost 3 of their last 5 in a season that saw their best lacrosse in the first half. The latter half of ’22 was a downward slide into mediocrity.

First year was a mixed bag for coach Treanor. Some big wins but also some big deficiencies in closing games out. Failing grades in showing up for the big game (ACC first rd vs Virginia; NCAA quarters vs Northwestern). The team didn't seem to gain any more discipline, that's for sure. The goaltending situation was a mess all season. The defense never got squared away. And on a day when they could have really used their offensive weapons against the Wildcats, they were all no-shows except for the elder Tyrrell. Meg Carney was less conspicuous as the season wore on. In her last 7 games she scored 8 goals 3 assists 4 GB's 10 TO's 1 CT 1 DC. Hawryschuk also faded in the last few games. Not with a bang but a whimper was how '22 ended for the Orange.

Maybe this is who they will be now--an upper but not elite tier team that doesn't seriously challenge for the title each year.

I wonder how much of a draw Syracuse will be going forward. I still don't know why Wurzburger changed her mind after committing to da Cuse and then going to Powder Blue Town. Syracuse graduates 3 and 51. Not huge losses. Hawryschuk never regained the stature she had before the injury. Adamson seems to be the only underclass with any real promise unless there are others I'm missing. So next year they'll have the House of Tyrrell back together, Meg Carney, and Emma Ward back from injury. Not enough to challenge for it all--in the ACC or the NCAA's. Long offseason with many questions to ponder for the Orange. We shall see.

https://cuse.com/sports/womens-lacrosse ... core/14542

[JoeMauer89]

Nothing really screams at you from the stat sheet (link below) from yesterday's wimpy showing by Syracuse in a 15-4 slapdown at the hands (or should I say claws) of the Wildcats. They lost in some areas but won in others--nothing dramatic. What was dramatic however was what Syracuse looked like on the field vs Northwestern. No heart, no fight, no clue. That's on coach. You show up like that for a semifinal against a very beatable opponent in the Wildcats? Not a good grade for Treanor or the team on what turned out to be the final exam for 2022. Lost 3 of their last 5 in a season that saw their best lacrosse in the first half. The latter half of ’22 was a downward slide into mediocrity.

First year was a mixed bag for coach Treanor. Some big wins but also some big deficiencies in closing games out. Failing grades in showing up for the big game (ACC first rd vs Virginia; NCAA quarters vs Northwestern). The team didn't seem to gain any more discipline, that's for sure. The goaltending situation was a mess all season. The defense never got squared away. And on a day when they could have really used their offensive weapons against the Wildcats, they were all no-shows except for the elder Tyrrell. Meg Carney was less conspicuous as the season wore on. In her last 7 games she scored 8 goals 3 assists 4 GB's 10 TO's 1 CT 1 DC. Hawryschuk also faded in the last few games. Not with a bang but a whimper was how '22 ended for the Orange.

Maybe this is who they will be now--an upper but not elite tier team that doesn't seriously challenge for the title each year.

I wonder how much of a draw Syracuse will be going forward. I still don't know why Wurzburger changed her mind after committing to da Cuse and then going to Powder Blue Town. Syracuse graduates 3 and 51. Not huge losses. Hawryschuk never regained the stature she had before the injury. Adamson seems to be the only underclass with any real promise unless there are others I'm missing. So next year they'll have the House of Tyrrell back together, Meg Carney, and Emma Ward back from injury. Not enough to challenge for it all--in the ACC or the NCAA's. Long offseason with many questions to ponder for the Orange. We shall see.

https://cuse.com/sports/womens-lacrosse ... core/14542

They have plenty offensively to challenge for a title next season. It comes down to how they improve defensively. BC loses arguably more offensive talent than Cuse does. They have a talented freshman GK coming in, we will see if she gets the opportunity to run away with the job. It also depends on if Cooper uses her final year of eligibility or not. I would think she will, but not as sure as both Megans. There's also any transfers that they potentially pick up this summer. We shall see!

Joe

[AreaLax]

Is Meg Carney returning? Her IG post is implying that she might not be coming back next season