Staff report: No. 12 Virginia hands Syracuse women’s lacrosse first loss of season
No. 6 Syracuse (2-1) lost a tough game Saturday, falling to No. 12 Virginia (2-1) on the road, 14-13.
The Orange and the Cavaliers were neck and neck in the first half. The score was tied five times within the first 30 minutes. Virginia ended the first half on a 4-0 run, taking the lead, 8-6, into halftime. The Cavaliers led 10-6 with 25:44 remaining in the game before SU went on a 4-0 run to knot the score at 10. The two squads traded goals for the remainder of the contest until freshman Charlie Finnigan scored the game-winner at the 1:33 mark for Virginia.
Senior attack Halley Quillinan led the Orange with four goals, and freshman attack Michelle Tumolo added four points on a goal and three assists. Senior midfielder Christina Dove also scored twice, extending her goal-scoring streak to 43 consecutive games
Syracuse will be back in action on March 8, when it takes on Vermont in Jacksonville, Fla.
Ice Hockey
The Syracuse ice hockey team concluded its regular season this weekend with losses Friday and Saturday at Mercyhurst, the nation’s No. 1 team.
Friday night the Orange (17-16-1, 8-8-0 CHA) trailed just 2-1 almost midway through the third period but eventually fell, 4-1. SU freshman forward Holly Carrie-Mattimoe netted her ninth goal of the year on a five-on-three power play with 3:24 remaining in the second for Syracuse’s lone score. The Lakers (27-2-3, 14-1-1 CHA) added to their lead, however, with a goal eight and a half minutes into the third and then tacked on an empty-net score in the final minute.
Senior goaltender Lucy Schoedel stopped 34 shots in the losing effort.
Saturday afternoon, the Orange jumped out to an early lead before losing, 3-1. Junior forward Stefanie Marty – who rejoined SU this weekend after missing its last four games while playing for Switzerland in the Olympics – scored on a five-on-three advantage with just less than eight minutes to play in the first period. It was Syracuse’s first lead against Mercyhurst in more than 190 minutes of play this season.
The Orange remained in front of the Lakers until the last minute of the second stanza, when Mercyhurst scored the equalizer. Despite a season-high 45 saves from Schoedel, the Lakers scored the go-ahead goal with 10:37 left in the third, and again registered an empty-net goal in the final minute.
With the two losses, SU drops to 0-8-0 all-time against the Lakers and finishes the season in third place in the College Hockey America conference. Syracuse will face second-seeded Niagara (12-13-5, 7-6-3 CHA) in the CHA tournament semifinals Friday in Detroit.
– Compiled by the Daily Orange Sports staff
