Spring Break
The Daily OrangeSyracuse women's lacrosse hoping tough regular season schedule pays off in NCAAs
By Meredith Galante
Posted: 5/6/09, 6:28 PM EST Section: Sports
Rowan said in the past, Syracuse's strength of schedule had been questioned, but this year's lineup of opponents made the naysayers quiet. Gait and goalie Liz Hogan agreed that the tougher RPI in schedule has helped the team prepare for the upcoming tournament.
"I think the hard schedule prepared us well," Hogan, who averaged 9.41 goals against in the regular season, said. "I think it's a huge advantage for us. When you go against the best, you can play against the best."
Hogan said last season's tournament run helped the Orange gain valuable experience playing under pressure and learning the worth of a tournament game. In 2008, then-No. 1 Northwestern ended Syracuse's season in the tournament semifinals with a convincing 16-8 win.
"I think we are in a situation where we've played a lot of tough games," Gait said. "We haven't walked through our season by any means. We had a couple more losses than we did last year, but that comes from having playing a tougher schedule. …We've been through that battle."
For Rowan, having the home game comes with an added bonus. Syracuse receiving the home game will allow her to attend her commencement earlier Sunday and then play in her last NCAA tournament later that afternoon.
"We were all so excited - I was especially excited to get a home seed, because I wanted to attend graduation," Rowan said. "It's going to be pretty emotional. I've been think a lot about graduation coming up and the end, so you know it's going to be emotional, but at the same time it's awesome and an awesome opportunity to play in the tournament and I feel so lucky to be out here playing still."
mkgalant@syr.edu
"I think the hard schedule prepared us well," Hogan, who averaged 9.41 goals against in the regular season, said. "I think it's a huge advantage for us. When you go against the best, you can play against the best."
Hogan said last season's tournament run helped the Orange gain valuable experience playing under pressure and learning the worth of a tournament game. In 2008, then-No. 1 Northwestern ended Syracuse's season in the tournament semifinals with a convincing 16-8 win.
"I think we are in a situation where we've played a lot of tough games," Gait said. "We haven't walked through our season by any means. We had a couple more losses than we did last year, but that comes from having playing a tougher schedule. …We've been through that battle."
For Rowan, having the home game comes with an added bonus. Syracuse receiving the home game will allow her to attend her commencement earlier Sunday and then play in her last NCAA tournament later that afternoon.
"We were all so excited - I was especially excited to get a home seed, because I wanted to attend graduation," Rowan said. "It's going to be pretty emotional. I've been think a lot about graduation coming up and the end, so you know it's going to be emotional, but at the same time it's awesome and an awesome opportunity to play in the tournament and I feel so lucky to be out here playing still."
mkgalant@syr.edu
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