On Sunday, Mar. 22, Georgetown men’s lacrosse (3-4, 0-0 BIG EAST) fell 12-18 to No. 8 Syracuse University (8-2, 0-0 ACC). This game capped off a tough non-conference portion of the regular season, during which the Hoyas faced four top-ten teams. Unfortunately, the loss to Syracuse also marked Georgetown’s fourth defeat against top-ten teams. However, the tough schedule may prepare Georgetown to make a run in the NCAA tournament, after losing in the quarterfinals last season.
Photo courtesy of Ben Bisang/Ben Bisang Media Junior defenseman Ty Banks in front of the large Syracuse crowdPhoto courtesy of Ben Bisang/Ben Bisang Media
Sunday’s game gave Georgetown a good taste of the environment they’ll face in the postseason. Syracuse’s JMA Wireless Dome hosted 7,239 fans for the game—the highest attendance of any game Georgetown has played this season, and topped only by the NCAA quarterfinal game at the University of Maryland last season.
The game started strong for the Hoyas, as Georgetown scored two goals in the first five minutes. The two teams then quickly traded goals to make the score 3-1 with eight minutes left in the quarter. As the two teams settled into the game, Syracuse senior goalkeeper Jimmy McCool gave Syracuse the chance to come back and take the lead. With seventeen saves on the day, McCool kept the Hoyas out of the back of the net, saving six shots in the first quarter alone. His effort relieved the pressure on the Syracuse offense, paving the way for them to take a 4-3 lead at the end of the period.
Photo courtesy of Ben Bisang/Ben Bisang Media Freshman face-off specialist Hayden Cody scored his first goal of the season against SyracusePhoto courtesy of Ben Bisang/Ben Bisang Media
The Hoyas went nearly 14 minutes without scoring, and they did not score again until more than five minutes into the second quarter. With 9:14 left in the half, Georgetown freshman attackman and midfielder Natty Mason finally shot past McCool and brought the score to 4-5—the closest it would be for the rest of the game. After this goal, Syracuse went on a 7-0 run over the next seven minutes, with two goals each from senior attackman Joey Spallina and senior midfielder Michael Leo. Spallina ended the game with six points total, assists plus goals, and Leo led all scorers with five goals.
The Hoyas finally stopped the bleeding in the final two minutes of the half, scoring two goals just eight seconds apart. Graduate attackman Rory Connor buried a shot in the back of the net with 2:21 left in the half. Following this goal, freshman face-off specialist Hayden Cody won the face-off and scored unassisted for his first goal of the season.
Coming out of halftime, it looked like Syracuse was going to continue their offensive domination as they scored a quick three goals. Nevertheless, the game suddenly turned into the Connor and Ransom show as they scored four goals over four minutes. With 6:24 left in the quarter, sophomore attackman Jack Ransom scored off an assist from junior attackman Liam Connor. Just fifty seconds later, the same sequence occurred. Two minutes later, the reverse happened: Liam Connor scored off an assist from Ransom. To end the streak, with 2:07 left in the quarter, Rory Connor—brother of Liam Connor—scored an unassisted goal to make the score 10-15.
Unfortunately, the five-point gap did not last long, as Syracuse found the back of the net twice before the end of the quarter. At the end of the third, the score was 10-17 Syracuse.
Photo courtesy of Ben Bisang/Ben Bisang Media Junior attackman Liam Connor led Georgetown with two goals and five assistsPhoto courtesy of Ben Bisang/Ben Bisang Media
Down by seven at the start of the fourth quarter, the deficit was almost insurmountable for the Hoyas, and Georgetown was beginning to look desperate. Many of their shots were saved by McCool or soared high and wide. Nevertheless, they scored two more in the quarter, including a goal by Liam Connor, assisted by Rory Connor, for Georgetown’s last goal of the game.
Liam Connor led all players with two goals and five assists on the afternoon, and thanks to his efforts, the Hoyas were able to perform offensively despite their defensive struggles. Connor, a transfer from Colgate, has quickly become an integral part of Georgetown’s offensive systems. This was his fourth game with five or more points, and he has been successful at assisting his teammates for scores throughout the season. Connor has recorded at least one assist in every game so far.
Photo courtesy of Ben Bisang/Ben Bisang Media Graduate attackman Rory Connor scored two goals and had two assists against SyracusePhoto courtesy of Ben Bisang/Ben Bisang Media
Syracuse’s Michael Leo finished off the game with a final goal with 2:06 left in the game. He found the back of the net for his 20th goal of the season, making the final score 12-18 Syracuse.
The most significant area in which Georgetown did not convert was in the fourth quarter on their man-up opportunities. In men’s lacrosse, penalties require the offending player to sit out either for a designated amount of time, usually 30 seconds to three minutes, or until the opposing team scores. Syracuse received five penalties in the fourth quarter, totaling five minutes and thirty seconds of game time, yet Georgetown only converted one of these. While the deficit was significant by this point, the Hoyas had a shot at bringing the match back into a close game. Going forward, the Hoyas will need to find a way to convert man-up opportunities into goals.
Photo courtesy of Ben Bisang/Ben Bisang Media Georgetown junior goalkeeper Anderson Moore tied his season-high with 14 savesPhoto courtesy of Ben Bisang/Ben Bisang Media
One highlight for the Hoyas was the performance of junior goalkeeper Anderson Moore. Moore tied his season high with 14 saves on the day, and moved into 8th place for career all-time saves for Georgetown with 424. Moore’s performance over the past 2.5 seasons has him on track to continue to move up this leaderboard, with a chance to end up in at least the top five.
The Hoyas look to bounce back from their loss and open conference play at Denver University (4-4, 0-0 BIG EAST) on Mar. 28 at 3 p.m. EST. Their game against Denver was Georgetown’s only BIG EAST loss last season, and the Hoyas are surely itching to get a win in this rematch.
