SU Field Hockey Silenced by Virginia 3-0 on the Road
By: Skyler Wilkes | @swilkes04
CitrusTV Field Hockey Beat Reporter
CHARLOTTESVILLE, V.A. – Although the final was just 3-0, 10th ranked Virginia absolutely dominated No. 11 Syracuse. Things didn’t look so bad early on; the Orange had two short corners within the first minute of the game. However, it wasn’t long after that things started to go south.
UVA controlled possession throughout the entire quarter. The Cavaliers registered 10 shots including five penalty corners. With just two seconds left, Dani Mendez-Trendler inserted to Annie McDonough, allowing Cato Geusgens to sneak in the first goal of the day.
The next period was even less eventful, except for SU netminder Brooke Boryzmowski. Virginia attempted six consecutive short corners and the sophomore saved four of them. It was a one point game at the half, but you wouldn’t have known that by looking at the stats. The Orange were outshot 17-2 and the Cavs took 10 more penalty corners as well.
Syracuse didn’t have another potential scoring opportunity until nearly halfway through the fourth. Two straight looks for Eefke van den Nieuwenhof were staved off by UVA goalie Jet Trimborn. Shortly after, Laura Janssen tapped in a great pass from Adele Iacobucci to extend the lead. Then, with four minutes left, head coach Ange Bradley pulled Borzymowski to give her offense an extra attacker. The move eventually came back to hurt the ‘Cuse when Geusgens scored again off a short corner.
Once it was all said and done, Virginia outshot SU 26-8, landing 15 tries on target. The Hoos defense was extremely aggressive, pressuring the ball every single time. They were able to stifle the nation’s fourth best scoring offense and give Syracuse its first shutout since April 2021. Regardless of the outcome, Brooke Borzymowski was phenomenal. The Maryland native recorded a career high 12 saves, single handedly keeping the ‘Cuse alive.
To make matters worse, it was the Orange’s ninth straight loss to the Cavaliers and their second defeat at the hands of a top-25 opponent. SU falls to 7-2, with a 1-1 record in the ACC. Syracuse aims to bounce back at home against Dartmouth at 1 p.m. on Sunday.
