Opponent Preview: Everything to know about UAlbany
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Syracuse continues the last of its two-game homestand on Tuesday when it hosts UAlbany and looks for their seventh nonconference victory of the season.
The Orange are coming off a 23-13 victory over Louisville, their sixth conference win of the season. The sides went back and forth in the first half with Meaghan Tyrrell scoring all five of her goals in the first 30 minutes, leading Syracuse to an 8-7 halftime lead. Emily Hawryschuk also scored five goals for the Orange, four of which came in SU’s 12-goal third quarter, which helped secure a 20-10 lead entering the fourth quarter.
Hawryschuk enters Tuesday’s game against the Great Danes with 258 goals, just three away from breaking head coach Kayla Treanor’s program record of 260 career goals.
Here’s everything to know about UAlbany (6-6, 4-0 America East) before it visits No. 4 Syracuse (12-3, 6-1 Atlantic Coast) at the Carrier Dome on Saturday:
All-time series
Syracuse leads, 14-0.
Last time they played
The two teams met just over a year ago as the Orange picked up a 16-6 victory at UAlbany on April 13, 2021. The game was scoreless for the first eight minutes, but in the remaining 22 minutes of the first half, the Orange completed a 12-0 run to effectively put the game out of reach before halftime.
In the first half alone, six different Syracuse players found the back of the net, but the Orange were led by Meaghan’s four goals and Megan Carney’s hat trick, who both finished the game with five goals. In the second half, UAlbany formulated a 5-0 run of its own to cut the deficit to seven with 19 minutes left, but after the Orange responded with a 4-0 run, the then-third-ranked Orange picked up their fourth double-digit win of the season.
The Great Danes report
UAlbany is coached by Katie Rowan Thomson — the second Syracuse female athlete to have her jersey retired — and has jumped out to a .500 start to the season. It enters Tuesday’s game winners of three straight. The game against the Orange will be the final of a five-game road trip for the Great Danes, who haven’t played at home since March 26.
Offensively, UAlbany is led by Sarah Falk and Katie Pascale, who have combined for 73 goals this season and account for over 40% of the Great Danes’ goals. Per Lacrosse Reference, UAlbany’s 32.4% offensive efficiency rate is 30th best in the nation and it possesses the ball 53% of the time, which is 18th-best nationally.
UAlbany has the 57th-best strength of record compared to SU’s, which is fifth. Despite being undefeated in conference play, it has yet to face its toughest conference test of the season in No. 6 Stony Brook, who SU defeated 12-11 earlier in the season.
How Syracuse beats UAlbany
In their past two games, the Orange have gotten off to slow starts offensively, being tied with Cornell and Louisville at three and two goals apiece, respectively, at the end of the first quarter. In both games, the Orange went on big scoring runs to pull away with double-digit victories.
Most of those runs came as a result of winning the draw control. Though the Orange lost Emma Tyrrell, who played an integral role in the draw unit, draw specialist Kate Mashewske has pulled her weight. She notched a career-high 19 draw controls against Louisville, tying Treanor’s record for most in a single game. The Orange’s 57.2% draw control percentage ranks 11th nationally, while the Great Danes’ 47.7% ranks 78th. Mashewske’s 120 draw controls nearly double Pascale’s 64, which is the most of any UAlbany player.
Once it secures the draw, SU needs to utilize its motion offense and cutting runs to create goal-scoring opportunities. It has a plethora of scoring threats even with recent injuries. Should Carney not play again, the Orange recently have seen strong performances from Olivia Adamson, Payton Rowley, Savannah Sweitzer and Jenny Markey, who are all viable options on the offense in addition to Hawryschuk and Meaghan.
Syracuse shouldn’t have too many problems — even with a slow start — against the Great Danes as the Orange enter with a 98.1% chance to win, per Lacrosse Reference.
Player to watch: Katie Pascale, midfielder, No. 23
The native of Baldwinsville, New York, leads the Great Danes with 65 points and is their only player with more than 50 points this season. Her points are nearly evenly distributed between goals (36) and assists (29), and she’ll be heavily involved in the offensive as her 15.5% play share rate leads the team, per Lacrosse Reference.
The 2021 America East Rookie of the Year and All-Conference second teamer is also the team’s leader in draw controls, which will be a key factor for the Great Danes on Tuesday as any opportunity the Orange get off the draw, they can use to capitalize and expand their lead.
Stat to know: 80.7% clearing percentage
The Great Danes clear the ball from their defensive zone to the opposite offensive zone at just over 80%, which ranks 99th of 117 teams in the nation. Syracuse can create more opportunities and generate turnovers if it properly pressures the UAlbany backline.
UAlbany also averages just under 16 turnovers per game, a mark that ranks 70th in the country. This can allow defenders, not just on the ride, to play tight defense and create turnovers, which will ultimately create more goal-scoring opportunities for SU in its final home regular-season game.