WLAX : Fouls cost Orange in 2nd half of loss to Wildcats
STONY BROOK, N.Y. – As Northwestern attempted to run the final three minutes off the clock, Syracuse was in hot pursuit. For every move a Wildcat made, an SU player was right on her tail, stick flailing wildly.
For Michelle Tumolo, the reckless play proved costly.
With just more than a minute remaining in the national championship game Sunday, Tumolo was issued a red card sending her to the bench for the remainder of the season. The card was one of three issued to Syracuse along with 18 fouls on the Orange in the second half of its 8-6 loss to Northwestern at LaValle Stadium in Stony Brook, N.Y.
Gary Gait felt the officials’ calls affected the game too much at times.
‘It felt like we were playing versus two teams,’ the Syracuse head coach said. ‘… They were out there and they worked hard. I certainly don’t know if I was happy (with them).’
Though normally levelheaded, Gait was issued a yellow card after the head coach walked onto the field before a free position shot to argue with an official.
While Gait gave Northwestern credit, the penalties hurt SU’s ability to find its rhythm offensively and left the Orange playing man-down in key situations.
Gait’s yellow card turned a free-position shot into a turnover and ultimately left Syracuse playing two men down because Tumolo received a yellow card about a minute earlier.
‘I thought it was a timeout and the bench official didn’t tell me it was a timeout,’ Gait said. ‘I thought it was a timeout and stepped on the field. It was my mistake. The ref gave me a yellow card. It was an error. … If I had to do it again I would look to the bench to see if it was a timeout.’
Tumolo contained by Northwestern defense
Syracuse’s star player and Tewaaraton finalist Tumolo was held in check Sunday by Northwestern.
She scored just one goal in the NCAA tournament championship on her lone shot on the night and the Orange offense struggled.
Northwestern came into the game with a game plan to shut down Tumolo after she tallied a hat trick the first time the teams met during the regular season in February.
‘In the first game that we played them we didn’t faceguard her in the first half and she really hurt us, Northwestern head coach Kelly Amonte Hiller said, ‘and then the second half we kind of contained her a little bit with the faceguard, so we felt that would be our best option.’
Northwestern’s defense shut down Tumolo and didn’t allow her teammates to get free either. In addition to holding Tumolo to just one score, the Wildcats also held the nation’s leading scorer Alyssa Murray to just one goal.
Though dynamic all season, Tumolo was a non-factor on Sunday.
Her lone goal wrapping all the way from outside the offensive zone around the net flashed her brilliance, but NU contained her the rest of the way.
‘Tumolo is a phenomenal player,’ Hiller said. ‘She’s very fun to watch and she’s very tough to stop. … We wanted to try to take Tumolo out of the game as much as possible.’
Costantino keeps SU close with strong play in net
Alyssa Costantino made a combined three saves in Syracuse’s quarterfinal and semifinal victories.
But against Northwestern on Sunday night, she kept the Orange in the game, finishing with eight saves, including stops on three free-position opportunities.
‘(Costantino) had her best game of the playoffs and played with confidence,’ Gait said. ‘That allowed her to play well and make eight saves from the best players in the country. … She saw the ball well and kept us in it.’
Costantino provided a series of key saves throughout the game to partially counterbalance the Wildcats’ dominance in possession time and at the draw circle. Many of her saves came on shots from in close.
With less than 12 minutes left in the first half, NU star attack Shannon Smith held the ball behind the cage. She lofted a pass over Costantino to a cutting Erin Fitzgerald, but the sophomore goalie turned quickly, stuck her stick out and blocked the shot at the last second.
Then, with the Orange trailing 5-4 early in the second half, Costantino made back-to-back saves on Smith. While the Wildcats eventually prevailed with an 8-6 victory, Costantino kept her team within striking distance.
‘It’s something to motivate us for next year,’ Costantino said. ‘We lost, but it’s something to motivate us and keep us working hard all year.’
Published on May 27, 2012 at 12:00 pm
