No. 4 Virginia’s 7-goal 1st quarter serves No. 12 Syracuse a deflating loss
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Gary Gait had talked with his team before the game about how they would handle the inevitable runs No. 4 Virginia would embark on Saturday. The Orange had to find a way to reset and make plays instead of allowing the run to persist.
But when the run arrived, Syracuse still wasn’t ready. It all happened quickly: Griffin Schutz scoring two minutes into the game, Xander Dickson notching a hat trick in 11 minutes, six of seven faceoffs going to Virginia and SU falling behind, 6-0, in the first quarter.
“And that was pretty tough to come back from,” Gait said postgame.
The Orange, in need of a win to keep their NCAA Tournament hopes alive, couldn’t reset or make a play. Defensive coordinator Dave Pietramala had prepared a strong gameplan, Gaid said, but Syracuse didn’t stick to it. Instead, they made a flurry of mistakes — including six turnovers in the first 15 minutes. SU faced an early deficit that proved insurmountable in an eventual 19-12 road loss and now stares at two straight years without a postseason berth for the first time since 1977-78.
“The Cavaliers, I thought, came out ready to play,” Gait said. “They were fired up, and they had a great first quarter.”
It took a few minutes for Virginia — the top scoring offense in the country — to warm up, but that changed after Connor Shellenberger turned the corner, drew a slide from Landon Clary and passed to an open Schutz. The sophomore attack stepped into a stinger that beat goalie Will Mark low, stick side.
Then, the problems that have plagued Syracuse all season persisted. Faceoffs and ground balls, two areas SU ranks in the bottom 15% nationally, became a factor. Petey LaSalla won the faceoff after Schutz’ goal, and Virginia scooped up two ground balls. The end result: Dickson getting a look mere feet from Mark in front of goal, which he finished to make it 2-0.
The next two goals followed a similar pattern. LaSalla — the Atlantic Coast Conference’s second-best faceoff specialist, and the best in Virginia history — won twice more at the X, the Cavaliers scooped up three more loose balls and two more shots made their way past Mark. After seven minutes, UVA led 4-0.
Any gamepan against the Cavaliers had to place a heavy emphasis on Dickson, their leading scorer. Yet, somehow, he easily found openings on back-to-back first-quarter possessions, leading to two goals in 50 seconds. Dickson made a quick cut toward goal on the first play, leading to a bouncer between Mark’s legs. Then, he found an opening to Mark’s right while SU sat in a zone, creating another uncontested shot that he finished low.
“He used his speed and his quickness on the slick surface to get his hands free and get some shots,” Gait said of Dickson. “He had a great game today, probably a career day, I’m guessing, and made it tough for us.”
Gait was correct. Dickson’s seven goals — three of which came in the first quarter — tied a career high he set as a freshman against VMI in 2019. He had scored six goals in three different games this season, including at No. 1 Notre Dame in late March, but managed to top that against the Orange.
Syracuse finally got on the scoreboard with 3:17 left in the first quarter when Cole Kirst used a screen from Finn Thomson to dodge down the left wing and score top shelf.
By that point, SU had already turned the ball over four times. A team that ranks No. 2 nationally with just 12.38 turnovers per game totaled 11 in the first half. Six came in the opening period, some forced by Virignia’s 10-man ride, others simply from sloppy passing. One turnover from Kirst near midfield led to Dickson’s second goal of the afternoon. Those mistakes, Gait said, created a deficit that Syracuse just couldn’t fight back from.
The 6-0 run was reminiscent of the Notre Dame loss — when SU allowed five unanswered goals to start, and eight more to conclude — and the Duke game, when six straight goals turned a 10-6 Syracuse lead into a 12-6 deficit. Those three games, all against top-five teams, were in the Orange’s hands. Until they weren’t.
“We’ve let the really good teams get, not two or three-goal runs — we know we can come back from two or three-goal runs — but when we get fix, six-goal runs, we put ourselves in a hole that we haven’t been able to come back from,” Gait said.
Johnny Richuissa, who finished 50% at the X, proved to be a better option after replacing Jack Fine, and SU only coughed up four turnovers after halftime.
Virginia didn’t slide much, and Syracuse didn’t see many chances to challenge short sticks, Gait said. Still, Syracuse — the nation’s fourth-most efficient offense, per LacrosseReference — turned in another smooth performance.
And yet, even with their early issues fixed — or at least duct-taped — SU couldn’t mount a season-saving comeback. SU will play its last game next Saturday afternoon in Durham, North Carolina.
“That’s what happens when you’re a young team,” Gait said. “You got to play a perfect game to beat a top-three team. And unfortunately, we didn’t get it done today.”
