The Dartmouth defense stepped onto the field clearly intent on shutting off Alyssa Murray, and for good reason.

SU’s leading scorer entered the game with 33 goals as one of the nation’s most dangerous attacks.

In the first five minutes, Murray was frustrated. The Orange offense fell behind early after it committed three turnovers and a pair of fouls. But SU head coach Gary Gait made a simple adjustment and put the stagnant Orange offense back in order.

‘They decided to try and deny Alyssa the ball, so we moved (Murray) from playing up top to behind (the net), and we ran some offensive plays from the top,’ Gait said.

In doing so, Gait slid junior attack Michelle Tumolo from her regular spot behind the net to the right side. 

For Tumolo, that right doorstep – a few yards behind the left shoulder of Big Green goaltender Kristen Giovanniello – was her sweet spot in the first half. She tallied six points (two goals, four assists) in the opening 30 minutes, serving as the catalyst for No. 2 SU’s (9-2, 3-0 Big East) dominant 22-4 victory over No. 6 Dartmouth (8-2, 4-0 Ivy League) on Monday in front of 554 fans in the Carrier Dome. It was the Orange’s eighth straight win and third in the last five days.

Tumolo finished with eight points, tying a career high, on three goals and five assists, each distributed to a different teammate.

Murray tallied four goals of her own, each coming off a free-position attempt.

‘On those kind of shots, you just want to get in on the whistle as fast as you can and just put it around the goalie,’ Murray said.

In total, 11 members of the Orange found the back of the net. SU has now defeated seven top-10 teams this season.

After scoring on a feed from Murray seven minutes into regulation, Tumolo recorded her first assist when she fooled Dartmouth defender Kelsey Johnson.

Holding the ball on the right doorstep, Tumolo faked a drive before backing away.

The Syracuse attack then turned to head toward the top of the fan as it appeared she had decided there was no opening there for a goal. The defender Johnson was lulled into a false sense of security.

But rather than swing the ball back around the arc, Tumolo found Gabby Jaquith streaking across the circle, who quickly put it past Giovanniello to give SU a 3-2 lead.

‘I just think that’s how I play,’ Tumolo said. ‘I don’t even realize it, but I’m shaking my defender, just trying to get her to move a little bit, and then I saw the opening and Gabby finished. It just happened.’

Once the Orange had a lead, it ran away with it.

Four minutes later, Tumolo found midfielder Katie Webster on a wide-open cut down the middle for a score. On the ensuing possession, she fed Sarah Holden for another SU goal. And with 8:20 left, Tumolo took it herself.

After drawing a foul driving from the right side, Tumolo lined up for a free-position attempt offset to the right. Taking one step, she bounced a shot past Giovanniello’s left foot.

The junior captain kept Giovanniello continually off-balance throughout the half. The All-Ivy League goalie entered the game third in the nation in save percentage and sixth in goals allowed per game, but nearly 23 minutes in, she had allowed nine goals – nearly one more than her season average – and failed to record a save.

‘I was just focused on getting my teammates the ball,’ Tumolo said. ‘They were cutting really hard. Their defense was really hard on the cutters and giving us a shove, but our attack was doing really well getting through and getting open.’

After taking a 13-3 lead into halftime, the Orange continued to attack. Tumolo scored first and Murray scored twice, but the highlight came with 6:32 left when freshman Loren Ziegler scored her first career goal.

The Syracuse bench, Tumolo and Murray included, erupted emphatically.

The Orange finished the game on an astounding 18-1 run, its most dominating stretch this season.

But if Gait hadn’t made the adjustment early on, the Orange may never have pulled away.

‘Eventually we took them out of that shut off by having everybody else contribute,’ Gait said. ‘And that’s the best way to end a shut off, to have everybody scoring so that you realize you have to play good team ‘D’ and not just deny one person.’

sebail01@syr.edu

Published on April 9, 2012 at 12:00 pm

Contact Stephen: sebail01@syr.edu | @Stephen_Bailey1