Eight different goal scorers contribute to Syracuse’s bounce back 13-8 win against Albany

Eight different scorers contribute to SU’s bounce back win over Albany

Jakob Phaup improved in the faceoff, and Stephen Rehfuss and Chase Scanlan each put up four points in the victory.
Published: April 8, 2021
NCAA Lacrosse: Albany at Syracuse
Syracuse Orange midfielder Brendan Curry (16) and attackman Stephen Rehfuss (29) celebrate a goal against the Albany Great Danes during the second half at the Carrier Dome.

No. 9 Syracuse (5-3, 1-2 ACC) defeated Albany 13-8 as eight different Syracuse players made it onto the scoresheet.

After losing two straight ACC games — the first time that a John Desko team was defeated in back-to-back conference games since 2016 — the Orange improved in both the faceoff and ground ball battles to beat the Great Danes.

In Syracuse’s last two games, Jakob Phaup struggled in the faceoff battle, going 1-of-10 against Duke and 1-of-8 against Notre Dame. Both of those wins came only due to opponent violations. Against Albany, Phaup improved to 9-of-15 against TJ McNicholas, and ran off the field celebrating with his arms in the air after winning the game’s opening faceoff.

Orange’s defensive unit lacked intensity in the last two weeks as well. But Syracuse prevented Albany from going on anything more than two-goal runs throughout the entire game, and didn’t concede a single goal in the fourth quarter. The Great Danes were never able to take the lead either.

“I thought, especially in settled situations, the defense was really strong. I thought we had good matchups,” said head coach John Desko after the game. “Our shorties played well tonight, didn’t get in foul trouble, and didn’t fall down a lot.”

As for the offense, Syracuse’s Stephen Rehfuss (2 goals, 2 assists) and Chase Scanlan (3 goals, 1 assist) led the Orange with four points each. Brendan Curry also scored three goals of his own.

For the Great Danes, Graydon Hogg led the line with four points (2 goals, 2 assists). Hogg has stepped up as the leading goalscorer for Albany since the dismissal of Tehoka Nanticoke on March 31. Ron John also had a solid performance for the Great Danes with four points as well (2 goals, 2 assists).

A low-scoring first quarter on both ends saw the opening goal not come until more than five minutes into the game. Syracuse’s Rehfuss opened the scoring and went on to notch his second goal of the night just over two minutes later to double Syracuse’s lead. Going into the first timeout, the Orange held a 2-0 lead in a physical battle — clashing helmets and sticks could be heard as players checked each other.

Although they were controlling the tempo of the game, Syracuse conceded a goal from Albany’s Corey Yunker. Yunker’s goal was only Albany’s second shot of the game. Syracuse’s Jacob Buttermore went on to score his second goal of the season to give the Orange a 3-1 by the end of the first, but the offense couldn’t find any rhythm until the second quarter.

Despite outshooting Albany 14-3, Syracuse only led by two goals after 15 minutes of play.

“Tonight it looked like we controlled our own destiny. I thought we were a little sloppy in the first quarter, came alive in the second quarter,” said Desko in a post-game press conference. “I think we got a little smarter as the game went on.”

NCAA Lacrosse: Albany at Syracuse
Syracuse Orange midfielder Jacob Buttermore (31) dodges to the goal as Albany Great Danes midfielder Ashton Bradley (32) defends during the first half at the Carrier Dome.

Albany started off the second quarter hot with two consecutive goals to tie the game at 3-3, but only scored one more goal before Syracuse took over and went on a four-goal run in the span of five minutes. The Great Danes got one goal back before the half, leaving them down 8-4 after two quarters.

Syracuse led 11-6 at one point, but still wasn’t able to pull away and cement the victory as Albany came back to score two goals in the final five minutes of the third quarter.

The Orange continued to put on the pressure however, with two crucial goals from Scanlan throughout the third quarter allowing Syracuse to maintain the lead. His second of the quarter came just after Great Danes Jakob Patterson and Alex Burgmaster scored consecutive goals — giving Syracuse a 12-8 lead heading into the fourth.

Syracuse aimed to stay in control and hold onto their four-goal lead and had no problem doing so, as Curry scored the only goal from both teams in the fourth quarter. With a 13-8 lead and just over five minutes left, Syracuse didn’t slip up and comfortably watched as the clock counted down to zero.

Syracuse will return to the Carrier Dome next weekend and look to avoid losing its third-straight conference game when they go up against No. 3 North Carolina on April 17 at 3 p.m.