No. 11 Syracuse Women’s Lacrosse Heads into Home Stretch of Regular Season
By Milo Hoffman | @mhoffnyc
SYRACUSE, N.Y. — No. 11 Syracuse women’s lacrosse is fresh off an up-and-down week, to say the least—but the downs may have outweighed the ups. First, it was a clash against then-No. 13 Yale that ended in a loss. SU was No. 6 at the time, so it was an upset defeat—much different from the 19-9 dominating win over the Bulldogs a year ago in the NCAA Tournament. With that loss, the ranking was already plummeting for the Orange, and a battle against Cal seemed like a “must-win in convincing fashion” type of game. Well, they did just that. The ’Cuse traveled out west and came back with an 18-6 win under their belt.
That convincing win over a heavily struggling Golden Bear team wasn’t enough to keep Syracuse inside the top 10. No. 11 now marks SU’s lowest ranking under head coach Kayla Treanor. So yes, a positive win over Cal—but the most recent news means the Orange have their work cut out. That starts with a battle against Virginia Tech this Saturday. Another “must-win in convincing fashion” type of game. The Hokies are just 8-7 this season and are winless in all six of their ranked matchups. In fact, they have been outscored 113-41 in those games. All-time, SU is 17-1 against Tech. So it’s safe to say there’s an obvious favorite in this one.
In the last game of the regular season, the choice isn’t so obvious—well, maybe it is, but for the other side. No. 2 Boston College makes the trip to Christian Brothers Academy, where it will take on Syracuse. The Orange don’t have great memories with the Eagles. Last year, BC sent SU home in the semifinal round of the NCAA Tournament. This time around, the challenge won’t be any easier. The Eagles boast a stellar attack, headlined by attacker Rachel Clark, who has 80 points this season—second most in the nation. It’s not just her, though—Emma LoPinto has 70 points this year, which is seventh in the country.
So, similar to SU’s most recent week of play: a game that should be a win, and one that is set to be a tough test. How are the Orange going to be successful? Well, just like always, Emma Ward is going to have much of the spotlight. Against Cal, Ward tallied five assists, moving her into second place in program history.
“She’s got unbelievable lacrosse IQ,” says head coach Kayla Treanor. “She’s got great vision, she’s like a quarterback out there.”
Even though the grad student is slated for her worst statistical year, she’s still been one of the more impactful players on the team—and she needs to come through in these last two games if SU wants to be successful. One of the main reasons Ward hasn’t been putting up the numbers is the absence of Olivia Adamson, but someone who’s stepped up and done her best to fill that void is freshman Caroline Trinkaus. Against Cal, Trinkaus tied a career high with four goals in yet another impressive performance.
“I give credit to the rest of my team,” says Trinkaus. “Just the energy they all bring—I love every second of it.”
The midfielder ranks second on the team with 27 goals this year, only behind fellow midfielder Emma Muchnick. These two and the rest of SU take on Virginia Tech this Saturday. Opening draw is set for noon. I’ll have you covered with live game updates @mhoffnyc on Twitter.
