FH : Syracuse uses strong second half to advance to second round of NCAA tournament
Ange Bradley said her Syracuse team showed early jitters in its first-round game against Richmond in the NCAA tournament.
The SU head coach watched the Orange try to find its comfort zone as the Spiders fired six shots and challenged SU goalkeeper Leann Stiver in a scoreless first half.
‘In the first half we looked apprehensive and held back,’ Bradley said in a phone interview. ‘It took us a while to figure out their pressing patterns that they did and then once we did that we got our confidence and we did well.’
No. 3 Syracuse (19-3, 5-1 Big East) found its confidence and used two goals from Heather Susek in the second half to earn a 2-0 victory over the Spiders Saturday in front of 529 in College Park, Md. The Orange made defensive adjustments at halftime to counter Richmond’s effective pressing approach to advance to the second round of the tournament Sunday, where it will face No. 4 Maryland at 2 p.m.
SU held off Richmond in the first half despite the Spiders holding a 6-3 shot advantage.
RU senior forward Katelin Peterson launched four first-half shots, two of which tested SU junior goalkeeper Leann Stiver. Stiver made both saves to keep the Spider off the board.
And at halftime, the Orange calmed down and made the necessary adjustments. Bradley said the backs reshaped different in the second half and the forwards — most notably Susek — made a concerted effort to link players in all three sections of the field.
With those adjustments made, Syracuse created more scoring opportunities, and outshot Richmond 9-3 in the second half.
Susek broke the scoreless tie in the 50th minute, off a pass from senior midfielder Martina Loncarica. And just five minutes later she struck again, this time with an assist from freshman forward Jordan Page.
‘She just was one of those forwards that popped back into the hole and served to be a connector between the backs and the forwards,’ Bradley said. ‘So she really was the impetus for change in our second half.’
Susek’s performance coupled with the stifling effort in net from Stiver led SU into the second round.
Bradley said the Orange will use the time before Sunday’s game to rest up and prepare for the next step toward the team’s ultimate goal of winning a national championship.
‘We’re taking care of our bodies right now, and getting ready,’ Bradley said. ‘We want to be national champions so we’ve got to win. That’s what our mindset is.’
Published on November 12, 2011 at 12:00 pm
Contact Stephen: sebail01@syr.edu | @Stephen_Bailey1
