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Just when it looked like Syracuse had done enough to erase its four-goal deficit from early in the second half, Ashlyn McGovern launched a low shot that rippled the back of the Orange net, restoring a two-goal lead for Virginia. 

Moments later, though, the Orange offense came to life and flipped the game for good. From behind the goal, Megan Carney fired a pass into traffic that landed in the stick of a Virginia defender. Midfielder Sierra Cockerille pressed the defender and tipped the ball back in the air, where sophomore Emma Tyrrell snagged it and dunked the ball into the net.

Carney found Meaghan Tyrrell, who scored to knot the game at 11, the first tie of the game since it was 1-1 in the opening minutes. On the sideline, head coach Gary Gait shouted “full speed ahead” as his team inched closer and closer to victory.

“I probably wasn’t thinking about the actual score at the time,” Tyrrell said postgame. “It’s more so we need an energy shift, we need something that’s going to spark someone to make another great play.” Carney scored the deciding goal 90 seconds later in transition, and Syracuse never looked back.

Syracuse’s offense was stagnant in the first half, notching just four goals during the span. But the No. 3 Orange (8-1, 5-1 Atlantic Coast) mounted a second-half comeback over No. 6 Virginia (8-4, 3-4) on Saturday, winning 15-12. In front of fans from the general public and parents of players, who were able to attend for the first time in more than a year, SU struggled to dissect the Cavaliers’ defense in the first half. But behind Tyrrell’s career-tying five goals and Carney’s four, Syracuse fueled its second come-from-behind win this season after trailing at halftime.

“It felt a little bit lackadaisical in the first half,” Tyrrell said. “But then, as soon as we turned into the second half, it was kind of like, ‘Alright, we got to put this together,’ and then people stepped up.”

Down four goals, with the first half winding down, Emma took a hard hit from a UVA defender in front of goal. She stepped up for her free-position opportunity and tried to run in and score, but before she could wind up for a shot, a UVA defender stick-checked her and jarred the ball loose.

Last weekend, the Orange had three free-position attempts to cut into the No. 1 Tar Heels’ lead, but Carney and Sam Swart took shots that were saved. After the game, Gait mentioned how SU wasn’t running the plays it worked on in practice, continuously electing to fire direct shots instead of mixing it up by passing occasionally. 

On Saturday afternoon, less than a minute after Emma’s failed free-position attempt, Cockerille drew a shooting space violation. She paced forward a few steps before sending a pass across the goal to Swart. The midfielder was open, but in a flash, she was stick-checked, rendering her shot tame and easy to save.

“We were just mentally not focused, and it started early, and 8-meters were turning into turnovers with saves,” Gait said. 

Syracuse had three free-position opportunities in the first half, but only Swart’s ended with a shot. Free-position struggles were indicative of SU’s first-half offense. The Orange shot just 23% in the first half, and the two teams had the same number of shots on goal (11), but SU trailed by three at the break. 

“That percentage is not good,” Gait said postgame. “Minimum, we want to have 50%, and we didn’t do that today.”

Syracuse came out of the second half with a newfound offensive touch. It began with Swart, who took a pass from Cockerille on the right side and barreled into the top right corner, marking SU’s first assist of the game. 

It continued when Emily Ehle elected to pass it out to the top of the scoring area, allowing the Orange attacks to run back-and-forth with quick passes, forcing the UVA defense to press. As the Cavaliers pushed up, Carney snuck around behind the goal and received a quick pass from Jenny Markey. Carney was wide-open on the doorstep for an easy goal.

Her score marked the turning point for SU, which began to run more pick plays to confuse the Cavaliers’ defense, so much so that UVA fans in the stands began shouting “moving pick.” Carney’s goal sparked a 10-4 run to close out the game for the Orange, one where SU unloaded 22 shots on goal compared to UVA’s five. SU regained possession after possession during the span by winning the draw control battle 13-4, a key shift in the game’s momentum, Gait said.

The Orange did enough to top another top-10 opponent, but Gait said Syracuse has yet to put together a complete 60-minute game this season. SU led for just six minutes on Saturday afternoon and looked to be on the receiving end of a second straight ACC loss until the 10-4 run. 

“We had about 20 minutes of good lacrosse on our team today. It wasn’t the best effort by us,” Gait said. “The offense decided to take some better quality shots, and we scored 10 goals in the last 17 minutes.”

Published on April 10, 2021 at 1:44 pm

Contact Gaurav: gshetty@syr.edu