Syracuse Falters on the Road in Regular Season Finale

By Sam Rothman

CitrusTV Field Hockey Reporter

Syracuse (8-7, 1-5 Atlantic Coast) gave up three straight goals in the second half as they fell 5-2 against St. Joseph’s (16-2, 8-0 Atlantic 10) in their final regular season game of the season. The Orange came out of the locker room tied with the Hawks, but SU couldn’t handle St. Joe’s offensive push late in the game. After recording six shots compared to Syracuse’s five in the opening half, the Hawks outshot the Orange 10-2 in the second.

Coming into Syracuse’s regular season finale, Kira Wimbert had not found the back of the net since the first game of the year against Vermont. But, the sophomore capped off the regular season with her second tally of the year just seven minutes into the game. Wimbert’s goal marked just the fifth time Syracuse grabbed the first goal of the game this season.

The Hawks tied the game at one with 15 minutes left in the first half. Moments later, Emily Henry redirected Tonya Botherway’s shot behind Borg van der Velde for the 2-1 advantage. After giving up back-to-back goals in 56 seconds, the Orange’s one-goal lead quickly became a one-goal deficit.

Last Friday on senior night, Roos Weers scored both of Syracuse’s goals on the penalty corner in the 3-2 loss. After giving up the first goal of the night, the senior provided a spark for her team in her final game at J.S. Coyne Stadium. Weers did the same on Saturday, firing a shot past St. Joseph’s goalie Victoria Kammerinke to tie the game at two with seven minutes left in the opening half. The Hawks committed a foul right in front of the goal, awarding Syracuse a penalty stroke. Weers took advantage to grab her team-leading tenth goal of the season.

Syracuse defended off St. Joseph’s first four corners of the game, but Tonya Botherway solved van der Velde on the corner for the 3-2 lead to start the second half. The Hawks added another two goals in the half to cap off the 5-2 win, finishing their season 8-0 at home.

Up next for the Orange is the ACC tournament in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. Syracuse enters the tournament as the No.7 seed and will face No.2 Duke on Thursday. When the two teams met this year, the Orange failed to record a single shot in a 1-0 loss to the Blue Devils. Syracuse finished the season 1-5 in ACC play, its worst mark since it joined the conference in 2013.

sbrothma@syr.edu | @samrothman_