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It was desperation time for Syracuse in the 88th minute against Cornell. Coming off of a scoreless effort against UMass on Thursday, SU was two minutes away from being held scoreless for the second consecutive game as it trailed the Big Red 1-0.

Erin Flurey received a throw-in halfway into Cornell’s defensive zone from Kate Murphy. Flurey muscled her way around two defenders before passing the ball ahead to Alyssa Abramson down the left sideline. Abramson let the ball travel 10 yards before sending a left-footed cross into the 18-yard box.

The Orange had four attackers positioned in the 18, and the cross traveled to Ashley Rauch on the right side of the penalty box. Rauch weakly headed the ball toward the net, but Cornell goalie Natalie Medugno easily scooped up the ball before punting it into Syracuse’s defensive third. For the game’s remaining two minutes, Cornell prevented any chance for SU to score the equalizer.

“We didn’t really feel threatened,” Cornell head coach Rob Ferguson said. “I don’t think there were too many shots on goal.”

Throughout the start of the season, Syracuse’s (2-4-0, 0-0 Atlantic Coast Conference) offense has struggled. Among 330 Division-I teams, SU’s 1.00 goals scored per game is tied for 212th in the NCAA. Additionally, the Orange have been shut out in half of their six contests, faltering to clean sheets against Delaware, UMass and Cornell.

In the second half of its game against UMass, Syracuse switched its formation from a 4-3-3 to a 3-5-2, hoping to spark its offense. After getting outshot 9-3 and trailing 2-0 after the first half, the Orange’s new tactical look put pressure on the Minutewomen backline, making it hard for them to advance the ball to the midfielders and attackers.

SU’s new offensive look amounted to five corner kicks in the second half, but it couldn’t capitalize. In the final 20 minutes of the game, UMass adjusted, leaving Syracuse’s offensive attacks with empty threats.

Ferguson and Cornell expected the Orange to start off in a 4-4-2 formation on Sunday, but they again deployed the 3-5-2. In the first half, the Big Red jumped out to a 1-0 lead and held the Orange to just two shots on goal.

Miranda Fournier | Design Editor

In the second half, SU head coach Nicky Thrasher Adams made another adjustment, switching to a formation that Ferguson never “got a true handle on,” but said it was something like a 4-4-2.

To counter Syracuse, Cornell switched from two offensive center midfielders and one defensive center midfielder to one offensive center midfielder and two defensive center midfielders.

Despite dropping one of their offensive center midfielders back, the Big Red maintained an aggressive mindset, which helped them control possession for most of the second half. The Orange were outshot 7-3 and didn’t register a shot on goal in the second half.

Part of the reason for SU’s offensive struggles to open the season is the departure of Chelsea Domond. In 2022, Domond’s five goals, five assists, 15 points and 51 shots all led the Orange. Syracuse has needed its attack to step up with the loss of Domand, but for the most part, it’s been held in check.

One offensive bright spot, though, has been Flurey. She has a team-leading four points thus far and in the games where Flurey has registered at least one point, the Orange are 2-0.

“(Syracuse) is very capable of rotations within its system,” Ferguson said. “There’s a lot of interchanging between positions. Flurey is an expert at that. She gets all over the field, so we anticipated that she would be everywhere and she was.”

Outside of Flurey — and when teams like Cornell key in on her — the Orange have struggled to find consistent offensive weapons. Hannah Pilley has taken three shots all season and has produced two goals. But in order for her to become a consistent weapon, the Orange need her to be more aggressive.

Additionally, Grace Gillard — a defender — is tied with Flurey for the team lead with two assists. SU needs its midfielders and attackers to provide more in order to turn the offensive struggles around.

So far this season, the Orange have only played nonconference games but will start ACC play next week against Miami. Since joining the ACC in 2013, Syracuse is 14-75-10 in conference play. If SU’s offensive struggles continue, it will be a major step back for the program after finishing with its best overall record in 2022 (8-7-3) since joining the ACC.

Published on September 5, 2023 at 11:46 pm

Contact Justin: justingirshon@gmail.com | @JustinGirshon