Syracuse men’s lacrosse wins ACC title, draws Harvard in NCAA tournament
Syracuse men’s lacrosse wins ACC Championship nailbiter 9-8 over Duke
The No. 4 seed Orange pull off two straight upsets to win their first conference championship since 2016.
In a weekend that may have redefined the trajectory of the Syracuse men’s lacrosse team’s season, the Orange delivered when it mattered most — topping two top-five teams, including a nail-biting 9–8 win over Duke in the ACC Championship on Sunday afternoon at American Legion Memorial Stadium.
It marks Syracuse’s third ACC Tournament title and its first since 2016. More importantly, it’s a massive statement from a team that entered the weekend on a three-game skid and on the edge of the NCAA Tournament picture. Now, with back-to-back wins over Notre Dame and Duke, Syracuse secured the No. 6 and a home game in next weekend’s opening round.
Here is how the Orange got it done on Sunday:
Defense wins championships
While defense has not always been a staple of some of the great SU lacrosse teams, the defense this season stepped up in a major way. In a game that felt in the beginning like it would be all about the SU offense, the defense down the stretch, got a few major stops.
After Payton Anderson scored his second goal of the day, putting the Orange ahead 9-6 with 11 minutes left in regulation, the Orange would not score again, leaning heavily on their back line to get stops. Duke scored twice to close the gap, and in the final seconds, they had one last look to tie the game. But tournament MVP Jimmy McCool stood tall, again.
The junior goalie, who made 20 saves in Friday’s semifinal and 10 more in the final, turned in another elite performance. Along with defenders Billy Dwan, Riley Figueiras, Michael Grace, and Chuck Kuczynski, McCool helped limit Duke to just eight goals on 35 shots.
If Johnny Mullen is good, SU is good
Syracuse built an early lead on Sunday through sharp ball movement, balanced scoring, and dominance at the faceoff X, thanks largely to Johnny Mullen. The specialist won 14 out of 20 draws, controlling possession and setting the tone with a “make-it, take-it” style that kept Duke on its heels.
Mullen also helped the Orange to a 37–20 advantage in ground balls. The formula is simple: when Mullen is winning faceoffs, Syracuse wins. In their last loss of the season, against UNC, he won under 50 percent. That has only happened twice all season.
If SU is going to look to be dominant in the playoffs it will start at the X with Mullen.
All around offense is the best offense
Syracuse offense scored by committee all season and Sunday was no different. Six different players saw the back of the net. Usually led by Joey Spallina, this weekend Owen Hiltz answered the bell.
Hiltz started off the scoring for SU in both the semifinal and the championship game. Anderson and Finn Thompson both joined him with multiple goals in the game.
For SU to be successful they will need to be able to rely on the guys beside Spallina. Although, Spallina will surely be looking to put the “big game player” debate to bed.
Selection Sunday
After a magical weekend in which SU won the ACC championship, a few hours later, the selection committee drew up a matchup between Syracuse and Harvard. A very interesting matchup for the Orange. SU is far removed from the 15-14 upset loss that took place on February 22nd. But you would also have to assume that Harvard has taken major steps forward since then too.
This is a team that McCool will surely look for revenge against. Head coach Gary Gait pulled the goalie at the 9:34 mark in the third quarter after such an abysmal performance. To that point Harvard had taken 15 shots on target and scored on 10 of them.
The Orange at that point, though early in the season, had not yet figured out how to close out games. The game entered the fourth tied at 12 and Harvard pulled off the upset 15-13. This team has been battle tested since then and look to show that it has learned some lessons since February.
The game is on ESPNU on Sunday at 5 p.m.
