Women's Lacrosse

No. 6 Syracuse women’s lacrosse routs Binghamton, 16-5

Sabrina Koenig | Staff Photographer

Syracuse scored five goals in the first 10 minutes and didn't look back, crushing Binghamton on Saturday night.

Despite facing two teams in less than 12 hours and facing a well-rested Binghamton team that scored 14 goals two nights ago, Syracuse never trailed at any point in 120 minutes of game time Saturday. For the third straight year, the Orange competed in a doubleheader and swept its opponents with ease.

In the latest installment, hours after No. 6 Syracuse (3-0, 1-0 Atlantic Coast) cruised to an 18-6 victory against Canisius (1-2), SU mauled the Binghamton Bearcats (0-2), 16-5, in the Carrier Dome. In the opening 10 minutes, SU overwhelmed the visitors with five goals en route to its third blowout victory of the year.

“We stepped up and executed,” Syracuse head coach Gary Gait said. “We were playing some great lacrosse.”

During the first game of the day, Gait yelled at his team to settle the offense. Against Binghamton, he didn’t have to shout orders. His team locked in from the start.

It took Syracuse less than a minute to gain a lead it wouldn’t relinquish. Forty-five seconds after the initial draw, freshman Emily Hawryschuk’s eighth goal of the year opened the scoring and SU never looked back.



The Orange offense pierced through a paper-thin Binghamton defense. Syracuse tested Binghamton goaltender Emma Jehle repeatedly, generating seven shots and scoring five times in the opening 10 minutes. SU would have scored six if not for a Natalie Wallon shot that beat Jehle but not the post.

In an attempt to stifle the Orange attack, Binghamton formed a brigade of defenders around the arc. It didn’t work. Syracuse lulled the Bearcats to sleep with passes along the outskirts of the wall and waited for the defenders to cease their communication with one another.

When that happened, an SU attack would dart through the wall, receive a perfectly placed pass and beat Jehle from the doorstep. First it was Hawryschuk, then Riley Donahue, followed by Mary Rahal. With 22:39 left in the first, Neena Merola exploited the same weakness and Syracuse led by four.

Binghamton began to clamp down on the interior of the arc. Taylor Gait promptly countered with a shot that fired through the defense and flew over Jehle’s right shoulder to the back of the net. Bearcats head coach Stephanie Allen responded with timeout, but by then it was too little too late.

“I think we are just starting to gel,” Gait said. “I think we have been executing well.”

The Orange converted stellar defense into efficient offense. Constant midfield pressure held Binghamton to only two shots in the opening sixth of the game. The swarming SU midfield drew six fouls and the sputtering Binghamton attack turned the ball over six times early on.

As Syracuse won a game in which the outcome was never really in question, history repeated itself. The Orange started the year with three victories for the fourth straight campaign, this time without all-time great Kayla Treanor.

In the first three games, the surging attack has averaged 17.3 goals per contest and scored at least four goals in the first 10 minutes of each game. Syracuse’s recipe thus far: score early, defend with the lead, repeat.





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