Perritt Sparks Syracuse's Semifinal Outburst
by Matt DaSilva |
Lacrosse Magazine Online Staff | NCAA Semifinals Blog
FOXBORO, Mass. -- Pat Perritt knows he's No. 3.
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Kenny Nims (10) and Cody Jamieson celebrate after the two connected on Jamieson's second-quarter goal Saturday in Syracuse's 17-7 victory over Duke in the NCAA Division I semifinals at Gillette Stadium. © Kevin P. Tucker |
On the Syracuse men's lacrosse team's first midfield line,
there's Dan Hardy and Matt Abbott, both All-Americans, and then
there's Perritt.
But in the NCAA Division I semifinals Saturday, Perritt was the
straw that stirred the drink.
And boy, did the Orange imbibe.
Syracuse poured in 17 goals, overpowering Duke at every turn.
Perritt, who came in with just 13 goals, scored four and added an
assist in the Orange's 17-7 victory at Gillette Stadium.
"Fortunately, the shots I was taking were finding the spots and I
had a good day shooting," Perritt said. "Their goalie takes up a
lot of space in the cage and I wasn't trying to shoot the ball too
hard, shoot it through the net.
"Coach said during the week to just try and place the ball, shoot
it overhand and put it to the far corners. That's what I tried to
do, and it worked."
Each of Perritt's four goals had the senior's shifty trademark.
There was the shot he sneaked between Duke goalie Rob Schroeder's
leg and the right pipe, the swim dodge over Steve Schoeffel to set
up an overhand bounce shot, the low-to-high rifle that landed in
the cage's top-right corner and the slick roll dodge yielding an
off-speed bouncer.
"They had a lot of offensive firepower," said Schoeffel, who was
the Blue Devil victimized most by Perritt's elusiveness. "It's huge
when you get a guy who had just 13 goals all season to go off and
have a day."
Said Perritt: "I play with two All-Americans on my midfield. A lot
of times I get the third guy and a short stick."
Syracuse head coach John Desko acknowledged that finding
short-stick matchups is something "everyone does; they play the
percentages."
Everything Syracuse put on the cage Saturday was high-percentage,
a testament to its keen finishers, now also including Cody
Jamieson. Kenny Nims matched Perritt's four-goal, one-assist
performance, while Jamieson added two goals and an assist as
Syracuse's fourth attackman.
Jamieson, the former junior college player of the year at
Onondaga, was sidelined most of the season due to NCAA eligibility
questions, but has come on strong as yet another option in
Syracuse's high-octane offense.
"It's kind of like having two [Stephen] Keoghs out there, one
right-handed, one left-handed," Nims said. "It's nice to come
around the cage and see either one of those guys wide open most of
the time."
Oh yeah, Keogh. He had a goal as well Saturday, his team-leading
47th of the season. That tied him for 10th all-time in Syracuse's
single-season record books with Paul Gait, Tom Marechek and Mikey
Powell.
That's company befitting of an offensive juggernaut.
