Syracuse ties Fairfield in scoreless draw
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Erin Flurey, stood close to the flag on the corner, throwing the ball to Kendyl Lauher. Lauher crossed the ball into a dangerous area toward Anna Rupert, who couldn’t generate enough contact to head it in.
The ball trickled to an open Liesel Odden, who faced the goal. But she mistimed her shot, unable to challenge Fairfield’s goalie Katie Wright.
Syracuse (2-5-1, 0-0-0, Atlantic Coast Conference) tied Fairfield (2-3-2, Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference) 0-0 in its fourth consecutive road game this season. Kate Murphy got a red card at the beginning of the second half, but the Orange fought on defense and held on to preserve a draw. The Orange’s first tie of the season broke a three-game losing streak.
Syracuse had the first clear chance of the game. Mags Thornton crossed the ball to the box while facing pressure from two Fairfield defenders. Flurey controlled the ball in the box and fired a shot to the net but Wright collected easily.
In the 13th minute, Syracuse threatened again. Grace Gillard lofted the ball to Murphy on the left flank. It was deflected by Sydney Corbett, then bounced back to Zoe Van de Cloot. Van De Cloot sent a through ball past the Stags’ defensive line and Rupert got on the end of it. Still, Wright came out early and stopped the ball.
Two minutes later, Van de Cloot lost the ball to Fairfield defender Meghan Carragher. Carragher then chipped it to Maddy Theriault while Gillard and Alyssa Abramson were trying to mark her. Theriault then unleashed a powerful shot, but it was punched away by Syracuse goalkeeper Shea Vanderbosch.
Six minutes later, Fairfield threatened again. After protecting the ball with her back, Reagan Klarmann launched a long ball from the middle of the pitch to Elle Scott. The Stags’ forward tried to fake out Vanderbosch but took the ball to the far left. Kylen Grant helped Syracuse get rid of the danger.
Syracuse’s defense helped draw four offsides on the Stags but the Orange struggled to deal with the Stags’ high pressure. In the 27th minute, a cross from the left wing bounced to Ashley Rauch. Rauch fired to the net but the shot deflected off her teammate Rupert.
Syracuse struggled to start the second half, with Murphy getting sent off after receiving a red card. She was sent off after taking down Theriault right outside of the box. Cailin Panacek missed the ensuing free kick to keep the game level.
Syracuse stayed tight defensively after going down a player as Van de Cloot was alert on the right side of the defense. In the 62nd minute, when Fairfield attacked, Van de Cloot read a dangerous through ball and came out to claim the ball, drawing a foul from Scott.
Once Syracuse was down to 10 players, Vanderbosch was busy in net. In the final 20 minutes, she recorded three saves, including a header by Sam Kersey in the 73rd minute.
The Orange again allowed another long pass after a turnover from Gillard. Klarmann delivered a pass to Scott who dribbled down the left side, attempting a cross. Grant was in the right spot and cleared the ball out of the box, securing the tie.
