The ACC Tournament ends for Syracuse after a 2-1 Loss to Wake Forest

By Josh Richardson | @joshrichy_04

Syracuse Men’s Soccer played its heart out throughout the final stretch in the regular season. SU ended the regular season with a win over 3rd ranked Pitt 2-0 and there was serious thought that the Orange could carry that momentum into the postseason. For a moment, it appeared Syracuse would, but the optimism was diminished in the second half of a one-goal loss to Wake Forest.

In September, Syracuse lost 2-1 to Wake in dramatic fashion. After SU took the lead with just 35 minutes to play, the Demon Deacons scored two goals in a three-minute span to prevail WF to victory. This time, almost the exact.. Same. Thing.

The Orange took an early lead with a goal from midfielder Gabe Threadgold. From that moment on, Syracuse was in control for the next hour of play. And then….. Deja vu. Wake scored two goals in 13 minutes (70th and 83rd) to give the Demon Deacons the lead with under 10 minutes to play.

To Wake’s credit, those two goals pushed WF up to 20/24 goals scored this season coming in the second half. That is a team that knows what it takes to win, make adjustments, and win soccer matches. The issue is that this is a problem Syracuse has been facing throughout the season. SU has been a part of 4-5 games that it has lost or drawn that it has had the lead with under 30 minutes to play.

The inability to hold leads has hurt the Orange time after time this season, and it’s fitting that the major issue of the year is the same thing that effectively ends the year. After the loss, it is almost impossible for Syracuse to qualify for the NCAA Tournament. In all likelihood, that was the final game of the year for the Orange.