Syracuse Men’s Soccer Drops Its First Since September, Loses to Virginia 3-0
By Josh Richardson | @joshrichy_04
The easy analysis for Syracuse Men’s Soccer this season has been that SU is just the best of the worst. The Orange can hold on to beat Colgate, and pull off some low-level upsets against Notre Dame and Providence. But when push comes to shove, Syracuse can’t compete with the top-tier talent of the ACC, and for that matter the country. Last night’s 3-0 loss to Virginia was further proof of that. SU appeared to be outmatched from the opening kick. The Cavaliers scored twice in a six minute stretch in the first half. From there, the Orange could never recover. Syracuse gave up third and final score 11 minutes out of halftime.
Some of the issues the Orange had were simple: They looked unprepared, rusty, and not ready to play against a quality conference foe. Some of that has to do with the fact the Orange haven’t played since last Tuesday, in the 2-1 win over Providence. The match this past Tuesday against Loyola was canceled due to inclement weather up in the 315. Without being on the pitch for game action in an 11 day stretch, it’s tough to then face a team in the top 30 in RPI.
The next chance for SU comes this Friday, when the Orange travel down to Death Valley to battle the reigning national champs in Clemson. The Tigers have had an up and down season. From starting the year as the top seed, to falling all the way down to 23rd in the nation, Clemson is all the way back up into the top 10, sitting at 8. That marks the final road match of the season for SU, before returning home to face #2 Pitt the following Friday. Kickoff between SU and Clemson is set for 7 on Friday.
