Spring Break
The Daily OrangeTournament provides new motivation, attitude as Orange pursues 2nd-straight title
By Conor Orr
Posted: 5/11/09, 2:14 AM EST Section: Sports
|
How? It's simple.
"It's playoffs," Galloway said. "It's the best four games of the year, and you want to keep working hard so you can play next week, and that's what you work for all year. This is what we've been working for since fall ball."
Motivated by the playoff atmosphere, the No. 2 seed Syracuse cruised to an 11-4 victory over Siena Sunday, charged by a newly added incentive: Win, and you play next week. Lose, and the season is done.
"I was happy with their emotion," head coach John Desko said. "The team just sounded really good all week. This time of year is always a juggling act. ...But I thought they stayed pretty focused."
The playoff attitude exhibited by the Orange Sunday took a team loaded with questions and provided it with answers.
First, a defense that struggled to play a full 60 minutes of lacrosse all season did just that. Against Siena, the Syracuse defense held its opponent scoreless for the first 42 minutes of the game, giving up only four goals total - two to the Saints' two top scorers.
Defender Sid Smith said the new atmosphere brought more camaraderie between SU's defenders. In certain situations, in which bad communication led to goals earlier this season, the unit tightened, putting the clamp down on the Saints' Bryan Neufeld and Jordan Loftus.
"We just played really good defense," Smith said. "Our talk was really good, and we just played really good defense. When we needed to slide, we did and tried to put them in uncomfortable situations."
Smith, alongside the defensive core, tightened even when circumstances got tough. During a game plagued with penalties, Syracuse was forced into six separate man-down situations without getting one back in return. The Orange killed five of those six opportunities for the Saints.
Next, a sophomore goalkeeper with a streaky reputation showcased his ability. Throughout the season, Galloway has been plagued with flashes of brilliance, followed by breaks of inconsistency.
Be the first to comment on this story