#9 Syracuse beats #20 Virginia for seventh straight win
By Ryan Croke | @ryancroke_
Charlottesville, Va. | No. 9 Syracuse Women’s Lacrosse (7-3, 4-2 ACC) earned a hard-fought win over No. 20 Virginia (5-5, 3-2 ACC) 6-5 on Saturday. SU never trailed, but also never held a lead larger than two goals in its seventh consecutive win.
It was a tale of two halves for both sides. The first half saw both attacks operating at a high level. Syracuse created quality scoring chances on seemingly every possession, while Virginia’s opportunistic attack punished the vaunted SU defense in transition.
A 5-4 halftime score didn’t move much after the break.
Both teams took it to another level defensively after halftime. The Orange unit, one of the nation’s best, shut out the Hoos in the third quarter and allowed just a single score in the fourth.
The Cavaliers’ defense was similarly effective. Syracuse sophomore Caroline Trinkaus found twine midway through the third for SU’s only second-half goal.
Both goalies did their part. Virginia’s Elyse Finnelle saved 10 of 16 shots faced in an impressive day between the posts. Syracuse’s Daniella Guyette stopped just four of nine shots faced, but did her part to protect a razor-thin SU lead.
Midfielder Molly Guzik’s two goals led the way on a quiet day for the Orange attack. Hoos attacker Jayden Piraino and midfielder Kate Galica both put home a pair.
It’s far from SU’s best performance this season, but it is another win. The Orange have won three straight over ranked opponents and are poised to continue their rise in the national rankings with wins over No. 5 Yale (7-1, 1-0 Ivy League) and No. 20 Virginia this week.
SU remains on the road, but is much closer to home next time out. Syracuse faces UAlbany (7-2, 2-0 America East) on Tuesday at 3 p.m.
For live updates on that game, follow @ryancroke_ and @CitrusTVSports on X.
