Syracuse Returns to Winning Ways, Tops Cornell
from press release
SYRACUSE, N.Y. - The fifth-ranked Syracuse men's lacrosse team (8-2) got back in the win column on Tuesday with a 15-10 victory against No. 3 Cornell (7-2) at the Carrier Dome.
The Orange withstood a late rally by the Big Red, but scored the game's final three goals to secure the victory.
Senior attackman Kenny Nims paced the SU offense with a game-best six points (2g, 4a). Sophomore attackman Stephen Keogh and junior attackman Chris Daniello both had hat tricks.
It was a game that featured two of the top three offenses in the
nation, but the Cornell men's lacrosse team was held well below its
season average of nearly 14 goals per game.
Freshman Rob Panell put up a fine showing in his first game at the
Carrier Dome, posting a goal and four assists. Ryan Hurley added
two goals and an assist, Pierce Derkac found the back of the net
twice and both Max Seibald and John Glynn rounded out the
multi-point scorers with a goal and an assist apiece. Glynn also
won 15-of-25 face-offs and registered 10 ground balls, while
Derkac's two goals were a career high and were also the first by a
Cornell long pole this year. In goal, Jake Myers made 10 saves in
his first start of the season.
It was the first time in the last six meetings between the programs
that the home team held serve, protecting its home field.
For the Orange, Nims had a pair of goals and matched Pannell's four
assists for six points to lead the offense. Both Keogh and Daniello
also recorded hat tricks, while Patrick Perritt (two goals, one
assist) was credited with three points. John Galloway had 10 saves
while playing the full 60 minutes between the pipes for SU.
Overall, the defending national champions held the edge in shots
(48-34), but the visitors owned advantages in faceoffs (16-11),
ground balls (33-28) and man-up goals (2-0).
The Orange used a prolonged first possession to get a goal by
Daniello at the 11:44 mark, but scored its second goal in
transition when Matt Abbott carried the ball from the defensive end
and beat Myers up high to make it a 2-0 game with 8:14 to play.
Cornell scored twice in a seven-second span to knot the game at
2-2. The Big Red's first goal of the game came when Glynn won the
ensuing face off and got the ball to Seibald as he ran through the
substitution box. Seibald caught the ball in stride and then hit a
wide-open Rocco Romero, who beat Galloway up high. The next goal
was scored as Glynn won the faceoff, streaked upfield and sent a
pass to Pierce Derkac, allowing the junior long-pole to score his
first goal of the season.
Perritt retuned the lead to the home team, but Pannell had a hand
in Cornell's next two goals to give the Big Red its first lead of
the day. The freshman attacker scored the first goal as he wrapped
around the cage and beat Galloway low. He then set up the second
tally as he lofted a pass over the top of the cage to Derkac, who
one-timed it into the net.
Hardy tied the game once again at 4-4, but a great hustle play by
Myers in the final moments of the quarter, backing up an errant
shot by beating two SU players to the sideline, kept the score tied
going into the first break.
Cornell opened the second stanza with the possession, thanks to a
man-up opportunity, but a rocket of a shot by Seibald hit Galloway
and danced on the goal line before rolling into the goalkeeper's
stick. The Orange got out in transition and Daniello managed to
score on the other end to take back the 5-4 lead.
Myers managed three great saves over the next five minutes, but
each time Cornell was unable to come up with the ball and
eventually Scott Kahoe scored to make it a 6-4 game at the 9:24
mark. Nims then pushed the lead to 7-4 when his defender slipped
and he rushed unabated to the goal to score at close range with
just over six minutes to play in the second quarter.
Cornell registered its first man-up goal of the night when Hurley
rescued an apparent turnover. After having the ball checked out of
his stick while standing on the crease, he beat Galloway to it and
then scored up high to make it a two-goal game.
Keogh and Nims teamed up on another Orange goal in the waning
seconds of the half to send the home team into the intermission
with the 8-5 lead.
After a turnover in the offensive end to begin the third quarter,
Cornell got two solid saves from Myers and then forced a turnover
to end an extended Orange possession. The Big Red couldn't
capitalize, however, and SU got three straight goals by Greg
Niewieroski, Keogh and Jovan Miller to make it an 11-5 game at the
7:19 mark.
Cornell got the three goals back with a run of its own over a span
of two minutes late in the quarter. A quick restart off an SU
offsides call gave the Big Red its first goal of the quarter as
Pannell found George Calvert all alone in front of the goal. Less
than one minute later, Pannell threaded a pass to Austin Boykin,
who converted on the doorstep. Pannell had the assist on the final
goal as well, as he sent a pass to Hurly, who rolled around the
crease and beat Galloway low to make it an 11-8 game.
Syracuse won the restart and Perritt scored with just 17 seconds
left in the stanza to give SU the 12-8 lead heading into the final
intermission.
The Big Red scored just 17 seconds into the final quarter as Mitch
McMichael found Glynn, who beat Galloway low to make it a
three-goal game. A huge save by Myers sent Cornell into its
transition offense, and after an initial miss, Hurley sent a pass
to Seibald, who ripped a shot into the back of the net to make it
12-10 with 13:40 to play.
Daniello ended the Big Red run when he tucked a shot under the
crossbar and Keogh made it a 14-10 game when he scored on the
doorstop. After a save by Galloway gave possession back to SU, the
Orange managed to run more than four minutes off the clock before
Nims scored to push the lead to 15-10.
Cornell got several opportunities to score as the clock ran down,
but weren't able to find the back of the net, as the Orange took
the 15-10 victory.
The Big Red is back in action this weekend as it travels to
Hanover, N.H., to take on Ivy League foe Dartmouth on Saturday,
April 11 at 7 p.m.
