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Syracuse’s offense has drastically changed in 2024. Last season, the Orange scored just 16 goals and attempted 7.7 shots per game. Through four games, SU has scored over half the goals (10) it did during its last campaign while averaging five more shots.

The Orange’s (3-0-1, Atlantic Coast Conference) newfound offense has led to success as they’re undefeated through four games, already eclipsing their win total from last year.

In the offseason, Syracuse head coach Nicky Thrasher Adams revamped its attack. She added a number of offensive weapons, including Mia Klammer. The striker led Division II in points last season with The College of Saint Rose. Klammer’s addition, along with others like Ava Uribe, has made SU’s attack a greater threat.

Much of SU’s success this season has come due to its first-half performances. Six of its 10 goals have come within the first 45 minutes. In their most-recent contest against Mercyhurst, the Orange tallied four first-half goals.

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The Orange have struck first in three out of four games. Last season, they only held first-half leads four times. These quick starts have allowed Adams to use her bench to keep her team fresh later on.

“It’s a pattern that I’ve been seeing all season long so far,” Adams said. “Being able to get that done in the first half takes a little bit of pressure off of us, and then we can start rotating substitutions, which is nice for the starters.”

In 2023, Syracuse struggled mostly due to its offensive shortcomings. It finished the year with a 2-14-2 record, one of the worst finishes in program history.

The Orange were decimated with injuries in 2023. SU lost Uribe, a former four-star recruit from Penn State before the season due to a torn ACL. Defender Emma Klein went down in the third game with a hamstring strain, sidelining her for the remainder of the season. By the end of conference play, a quarter of the roster had missed significant time.

This tied Adams’s hands. She was forced to play her starters longer than she wanted to because of a limited bench. Fatigue led to a lack of goals and Adams looked to upgrade the roster.

The Orange first added some pieces out of the transfer portal — Julia Dening (Siena), Klammer (Saint Rose), Moo Galbus (North Carolina), Dalani Stephens (UNC Greensboro) and Julia Coval (Gardner-Webb).

So far in 2024, SU hasn’t been as unlucky with injuries. Besides Klammer being out to start the season and starting goalkeeper Shea Vanderbosch missing the last two games, everyone else has stayed healthy. Uribe is also back on the field and has started each of the first four games.

“I knew as long as we could be healthy going into this season, this could be a really good start for us,” Adams said following Syracuse’s victory over Mercyhurst Sunday.

In the first game of the year against UMass, the Orange scored two goals in the first 20 minutes and never looked back. Uribe scored her first collegiate goal in the 13th minute and assisted another to Ashley Rauch seven minutes later, clinching the 2-0 shutout.

Later that week, Syracuse tied Maine 1-1, the only game so far that it didn’t score first. After an early goal by the Black Bears, Iba Oching netted the equalizer in the 70th minute, knotting the score at 1-1.

In its next game against Siena, it took two minutes into the second half for SU to garner a lead when Rauch recorded her second goal of the year. But the Orange cruised to another 2-0 victory after their top goal scorer in 2023, Erin Flurey, added a second.

“Against Siena, I thought we were fine in the first half,” Adams said. “(We) couldn’t get a rhythm in the final third. (We made) two adjustments at halftime and then it broke through.”

But Syracuse’s best performance of the year came Sunday against Mercyhurst. The Orange scored four goals in the first 31 minutes, leading to a 5-0 win. Because of the large lead, Adams used every available player on her bench. Only Kylen Grant played a full 90 minutes.

“I think our offense did a really good job of checking back today and showing for the ball,” Stephens, who scored two goals in the match, said postgame. “It’s something we’ve been working on in practice extensively, so it was really good to see that come out in the game.”

Adams believes that these strong starts will pay off in ACC play. Syracuse didn’t win a single conference game last season. But with increased attacking production, Adams feels her team can be comfortable against better competition.

“I think what this team is finding is we are all one, trying to compete for the same goal, so if you’re a starter or a reserve, whatever minutes you have, it’s more about valuable minutes rather than individual stats with this team,” Adams said.

Published on August 28, 2024 at 10:44 pm

Contact Noah: njnussba@syr.edu