MLAX : SU reflects on Big East title; record-setting senior class plays final regular-season game
Arguably the biggest achievement in Syracuse’s 20-6 romp of St. John’s went overlooked. Head coach John Desko didn’t mention it at the postgame press conference. Neither did any of the players.
But with a win against the Red Storm, SU secured the Big East championship for the second consecutive season. After last weekend’s victory over Notre Dame, Syracuse controlled its own destiny heading into Saturday’s date with SJU.
‘It means a lot,’ SU attack Stephen Keogh said after reporters pulled him aside following the press conference. ‘The Big East has some great teams.’
It’s a statement that is backed up by the Orange’s average margin of victory in this season as compared to last year.
This season, Syracuse matched its 6-0 conference record from a year ago, but games were much closer for SU. The 2010 squad won its Big East games by an average of 7.7 goals per game. The closest contest was a three-goal win over Georgetown.
In 2011, the Orange’s average margin of victory was down to 6.5 goals, including two one-goal wins against Georgetown and Villanova.
Keogh credited St. John’s for having a talented young nucleus that is poised to do big things in the future of the conference. The Red Storm’s three starting attack Kieran McArdle, Colin Keegan and Kevin Cernuto are all freshmen.
On Saturday, those three players combined for four of St. John’s six goals.
‘St. John’s whole starting attack, I think, are freshmen, and they’ve got some pretty good players,’ Keogh said. ‘Villanova is coming on strong. Notre Dame is a great team.’
Coming into the weekend, three of the league’s seven teams were ranked in the Inside Lacrosse poll.
But even after prevailing in a tough Big East conference, Keogh pointed to something bigger. On Sunday, the Orange finds out its seed and opponent in the NCAA tournament.
All season long, that is where the seniors have pointed towards. And winning the Big East championship didn’t change that.
‘It’s fun to win the Big East,’ Keogh said. ‘But we’re just going to look to see who our next opponent is tomorrow night and just get fired up and just get ready for next weekend.’
SU seniors go out in style
The most successful class of players in Syracuse history left the field. The players had completed the final regular-season game of their record-breaking careers. John Desko has known many of them for much longer than the four years they’ve been at Syracuse, and watched them achieve unparalleled success.
‘It’s been a good group to really watch grow up,’ Desko said. ‘A lot of these guys I’ve watched not only a little bit in high school, but through modified programs, freshman and JV programs. … For them to have the record they have and the success they’ve had so far, it’s been a very special group.’
With Syracuse’s 20-6 win over St. John’s, SU’s senior class won its 59th career game. That’s the most ever for one class, and includes two back-to-back seasons that finished up with national championships in 2008 and 2009. While those accomplishments are certainly glaring, almost all of the seniors have said they won’t look back on them until their careers are over.
Part of that senior class is attack Stephen Keogh, who finished the game with two goals that both came in the second half. For Keogh, though, this certainly wasn’t the final game he’ll play in a Syracuse uniform with the NCAA tournament still on the horizon. So though this was Senior Day, Keogh said that seeing some freshmen get the opportunity to play was even more of a thrill.
‘Those kids might not see time on the field … but they’re a big part of our team,’ Keogh said. ‘There’s 52 players on us, and everybody does little things to help us get better. It was fun watching those guys and just getting up and cheering for them’
