Syracuse Stays Perfect in Conference Play, Cruises Past Virginia Tech 17-5
By: Ian Nicholas | @IanNicholas25
CitrusTV Women’s Lacrosse Beat Reporter
Blacksburg, VA – No. 3 Syracuse (7-2, 4-0 Atlantic Coast Conference) rebounded from a Wednesday loss to No. 13 Florida with an impressive 17-5 victory at No. 24 Virginia Tech (7-4, 2-2 Atlantic Coast Conference). The Orange have now won six straight contests against the Hokies over the last four seasons. SU wraps up its three-game road trip with a 2-1 record, nabbing comfortable conference wins over two ranked opponents in Virginia and Virginia Tech.
The start of this latest ACC triumph was anything but comfortable for SU, however. Tech would score two unanswered goals in the first three minutes off tallies from grad student Sarah Lubnow and sophomore Whitney Liebler. Kayla Treanor’s team used this early deficit as a wake-up call, responding with a 6-0 run over the next 11 minutes. Senior Meaghan Tyrrell woke up as well, playing a hand in five of these six scores after accounting for just two points in the loss to UF on Wednesday. The All-American had two goals and two assists by the end of the first quarter. Fellow senior Megan Carney also had a pair of points following 15 minutes of play. Virginia Tech junior Grace New scored with three tenths of a second left in the opening frame to bring the score to 6-3.
What was Syracuse’s response to that goal? Another 6-0 run throughout the duration of the second quarter, giving the Orange a 12-3 lead at halftime. The Orange had five different goal scorers in the second frame, including grad student Emily Hawryschuk. Hawryschuk’s two first-half goals gave her 233 on her career, moving the All-American into third place on SU’s all-time record list.
Carney and junior Emma Tyrrell added scores in the third quarter to give Syracuse a 14-4 advantage heading into the fourth. Hawryschuk and Carney would own the final frame. From 11:59-7:02, Carney found Hawryschuk on three separate occasions to extend the lead to 17-4. Liebler scored the last goal with 5:02 remaining, as the Hokies scored only three times over the final 57 minutes. Syracuse Redshirt Junior Kimber Hower had a solid day in the net after being pulled early in the loss to Florida, saving four shots with a .444 save percentage.
Carney tied a season-high with eight points off three goals and five assists, while Meaghan Tyrrell scored at least seven points (four goals, three assists) for the second time this season. Hawryschuk scored five goals off eight shots, one of five members of the Orange with multiple scores. The Orange dominated in the draw circle 20-6, with Emma Tyrrell and Senior Sarah Cooper winning four apiece. Junior Kate Mashewske led the pack with a season-best 11 draw controls.
Syracuse returns home to the 315 with a week to prepare for Temple (5-3, 0-0 American Athletic Conference), who it’ll host on Saturday, March 26. Opening draw is at 4:30pm. The Orange’s matchup against the Owls begins a four-game homestand, which will conclude on April 9 against the No. 2 North Carolina Tar Heels.
