SU opens season with dominating 21-6 win over Canisius
SU dominates Canisius 21-6 in season opener
The Orange got off to a rocket start in their season-opener against in-state foe Canisius, winning 21-6 with goals from nine different players, including a historic seven from Emily Hawryschuk. After jumping out to a 4-0 in a little under five minutes, the Orange never looked back, scoring a total of 14 in the first half.
The Orange fed off their monster start all night. Well-conditioned and prepared, the Orange played inspired lacrosse. “It’s the high energy of the opening game,” said Hawrychuk. “That’s why we had the quick start. But all of us know that going through the rest of the season we know we need to keep the energy high.”
Hawrychuk was not alone tonight, despite scoring the second-most goals in program history. “A great feeder,” according to Emily Hawrychuk, Megan Carney added five assists on the night with three coming from goals by Hawrychuk. The Orange bench also added three goals of its own to go along with four assists.
“It’s just so much fun to play with the girls that are out there,” said Sam Swart. “Everyone who was out there played great… and we’re going to continue to develop our chemistry going into the rest of the season.”
Despite being in attack mode for a majority of the game, the back of Syracuse’s lineup stepped up when it had to. The Orange maintained control of the ball for a majority of the game, winning 23 of 29 draws and committing 8 turnovers; half as many as a Canisius foe who failed to hold possession for, by my estimation, over a quarter of actual playing time.
With a daunting schedule ahead, the Orange will have to continue to build chemistry and correct mistakes that arise along the way. Head coach Gary Gait remained humble after the game, admitting that the Orange needed to clean up a few mistakes before their next game, but that ultimately “this is a final four team.” The Orange allowed just two goals in the second half and didn’t allow a goal for the first 20 minutes of the half. Moving forward, the Orange will continue to rely on the energy and enthusiasm that motivated them tonight.
No opponent deserves to be overlooked, and the Orange stood by that testament. At the same time, Gait admitted that the Orange were ready for a more experienced opponent, and he believes that Stony Brook will “give the Orange a much tougher opponent.”
Despite having a much more daunting schedule on the horizon, including games against #2 Maryland and #3 Northwestern, the Orange remain confident. Despite playing a less difficult opponent, the result this evening speaks to how tenacious the Orange are for their first national title. A national title is something a majority of the team is thinking about, and if the team continues to dominate draws and cut to the ball with the same level of explosiveness, that confidence will be justified.
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