Syracuse Men’s Lacrosse Wins Third Straight, Kraus-Simmons Trophy

By: Ashley Wenskoski | @AshleyWenskTV

Syracuse men’s lacrosse took home some hardware on Saturday afternoon; not of the ACC or NCAA caliber, but of one of college lacrosse’s oldest rivalries.

The Orange (6-4, 0-2 ACC) will keep the Kraus-Simmons trophy for the ninth straight season. The award is given each year to the winner of the central New York Hobart-SU rivalry. The two teams have played each other annually dating back to 1916.

The trophy’s inception came in 1986, and is named for legendary head coaches at the two schools. Roy Simmons Sr. won 253 games over 39 years at the helm of the Orange from 1931 to 1970. Babe Kraus won 208 games as the head of the Statesmen from 1925 to 1966.

SU extended their win streak to three games with the 18-7 victory over Hobart (4-4). After falling behind 2-0 to start the game, the Orange scored seven unanswered goals in the first half and never looked back.

Joey Spallina led SU with six points on four goals and two assists. He moved into the top 10 freshman season record books in goals, assists, and points, surpassing current head coach Gary Gait on the way. Freshman Michael Leo had a breakout day on offense as well with a hat trick.

Will Mark made 14 saves in goal for the Cuse before he was substituted out in the fourth period for last year’s starter Harrison Thompson. 

 Hobart’s offense was led by two goals from John Jude Considine. Elhanan Wilson made 13 saves in his second start between the pipes for the Statesmen.

The Orange now head back into the gauntlet of conference play after a bit of a reprieve that allowed them to rack up three consecutive wins against Hofstra, St. Bonaventure, and Hobart. All five of their final remaining games are against ranked opponents, making it a bit of an uphill battle if the Orange are hoping for an NCAA Tournament berth. 

First up is none other than the No. 1 team in the nation. Syracuse will take on Notre Dame for their final home game of the regular season this Saturday. The Fighting Irish are coming off of a tough loss to No. 3 Virginia that figures to shake up the national rankings heading into Week 7.

Faceoff from the JMA Wireless Dome is scheduled for 2:00pm on Saturday. SU will honor their seniors before the game as well; CitrusTV will have full coverage on our social media at @CitrusTVSports.