Now or Never to Earn Win Number One for Syracuse Women’s Soccer
By Trey Redfield
CitrusTV’s Women’s Soccer Beat Reporter
Midway through September, head coach Nicky Adams led Syracuse Women’s Soccer into Pittsburgh to begin her second season at the helm. Finally, after a seemingly fast seven weeks, the Orange have reached the final two games of the season.
Back in early September, I predicted the team to go 3-5-1, finishing eleventh in the Atlantic Coast Conference, and creating some positives to look at for 2021.
Boy, oh boy, was I wrong.
In a shortened schedule, Syracuse has been through it all. They’ve lost to good teams, they’ve lost to not so good teams. The offense has been completely nonexistent, the defense somewhat has. The only positive — we all know who — is Lysianne Proulx, who now leads the entire country in saves per game at 10.2. Overall, it has led to zero wins and six losses, with a goal differential of -15, and ultimately, tied for last in the Atlantic Coast Conference.
There have been teams that have had struggles in putting the ball in the back of the net, but nothing compares to what this Syracuse offense has been going through. It took them six games to net just one goal.
It was Meghan Root, 2019’s leading goal scorer for the Orange, who netted the first goal of the year on Thursday. But, Adams knows there is a lot of work to do on the defensive side as well.
“We are going to continue to focus on our width defending and our box marking,” she said, after the 3-1 loss to Boston College on Thursday night. “The other thing we have to be better at is clearances.”
The miscues on the defensive side were in full form, to say the least. Syracuse gave up 26 shots with 17 of them on target. The best way to put it was that Thursday night’s match between two winless squads was a defensive collapse, for the Orange. Not only did they give up the most shots on goal this season on Thursday, but it was against Boston College — one of the three teams at the bottom of the Atlantic Coast Conference, including Syracuse.
Tomorrow, the Orange travel to the southernmost part of the continental United States to face the third team at the bottom of the Atlantic Coast Conference, in Miami. Coach Adams and company have seen the Hurricanes recently. Last season, it was the U that came out on top at SU Soccer Stadium, 2-1.
Playing on the road has been a struggle for the Orange dating back to September 2, 2018. That was the last time Syracuse won a road game, which was against Northeastern.
If Syracuse can’t find at least a point down in Coral Gables, then who knows if they will find one this season. After the trip down south, the Orange host No.10 Virginia on Senior Day. Virginia was scheduled to be the Senior Day visitors last year as well, but the game was canceled.
So one week remains for Syracuse Women’s Soccer. It has been a tough season, having to face opponents solely coming from the Atlantic Coast Conference. But that tough season wraps up on Sunday.
Syracuse’s first win is waiting. It’s now or never to decide if they want to earn it.
dwredfie@syr.edu | @Trey_Redfield
