How opponents have limited Emma Ward in Syracuse’s 3-game skid
Emma Ward has led SU's attack with a team-high 69 points. Though, in its three-game losing streak, she's averaged just two points a game. Avery Magee | Asst. Photo Editor
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Emma Ward made history with 12:19 to play in the second quarter of No. 17 Syracuse’s Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament First Round matchup versus No. 9 Stanford. The graduate student flipped a pass to Gracie Britton, who buried the shot to make Ward SU’s all-time assists leader.
The problem? It was Ward’s first point in over five quarters of play, and her only point of the night.
Syracuse (9-8, 5-4 ACC) has heavily relied on Ward to carry its attack throughout 2025. Ward’s recent struggles have limited the Orange, leading to a three-game losing streak at their most critical juncture of the season. She’s averaged just two points across SU’s last three outings, including her first zero-point performance since her freshman year in 2021.
As Ward goes, Syracuse’s offense goes, and opponents have quickly figured that out. But Ward wasn’t supposed to be SU’s sole centerpiece in her final year of a historic career. She was set to be the catalyst of a dynamic duo, just as she was a year ago.
Alongside Emma Tyrrell, SU’s attack scorched its way through the season to reach its second consecutive Final Four. At the onset of this season, senior Olivia Adamson was expected to be Ward’s pairing. The attack emerged as an X-factor for the Orange last season, netting 58 goals and earning an All-ACC First Team honor.
Over the offseason, Adamson fine-tuned her game in preparation for a larger role next to Ward. But three games in, she was suddenly ruled out for the year with a lower-body injury. Through just three games, Adamson was off to a scorching hot start with 10 goals and 16 points. Syracuse lost its most lethal goal scorer, and Ward didn’t have a solidified partner.
Adamson’s absence has limited the Orange all season. But in clutch situations, it’s more apparent than ever that Ward is left with all the pressure.
Per Lacrosse Reference’s analytics system, Ward is one of the most relied-upon players in the country. Her weighted play shares metric, which calculates how often a player appears in the box score, ranks first on the team at 11.6%. When calculating her assists shares, which measures a player’s percentage of a team’s assists, she has an astounding 40.8%. No other player on Syracuse is above 10%.
The metrics reveal Ward’s excellence, but also a fatal flaw in SU’s formula: if Ward falters, it does too. With Ward limited early in the Orange’s matchup against Virginia Tech on April 12, Syracuse couldn’t recover from its early deficit. When she was limited against No. 2 Boston College and Stanford, SU turned in its two worst offensive efficiency performances of the season.
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Against the Cardinal in Charlotte, the Orange recovered from an early deficit with a 7-0 run to take command. Ward, however, didn’t play much of a role in their offensive explosion. As two Stanford defenders converged on her at X, Ward attempted to spin away near the end line but turned it over.
Just as Ward has seen all year, two defenders often merged to guard her when she gained possession. She passed off many times but occasionally made a run at the cage, tip-toeing the crease on a goal before it was called back due to a crease violation. Ward’s dish to Britton capped the 7-0 run. But from there, Ward and the Orange went quiet.
Ward posted a quiet statline earlier in the season versus Pitt. Still, she made an impact.
“ Even if it’s not showing up in her points, we always feel her presence,” sophomore Joely Caramelli said of Ward after SU’s win over the Panthers. “She’s such a big leader for us out there that she’s always telling us what to do.”
This time, however, was different. As the Orange went cold, Ward moved all across the attack. She started in her usual spot behind the net, then she later moved to the top of the fan in an attempt to orchestrate any offense. But it didn’t work. Syracuse scored just two goals across the final 42 minutes, with Ward recording only one shot and committing three turnovers.
Ward’s limited display was a continuation of her performance against the Eagles, one of her worst of her career. Per Lacrosse Reference, SU tallied a 6.7% offensive efficiency against BC, 24.2% less than its season average, and the worst mark in head coach Kayla Treanor’s four-year tenure. Though, Treanor felt her attack was more effective than the numbers suggest.
“Maybe I’ll feel differently watching the tape, but I really liked what our offense was doing,” Treanor said postgame. “Especially toward the end of the game. We were going full speed. Our ball movement looked good. We were getting open.”
Syracuse has relied upon Emma Ward all season, tallying 27 goals and 42 assists. Leonardo Eriman | Asst. Video Editor
Ward posted a goose egg on the cusp of history. Already trailing 6-0, Ward had a look at the net from the right elbow, but fired the ball directly at BC goalie Shea Dolce. Later, as the Orange neared their lowest single-game goal tally in program history, Ward emerged from X and turned the ball over, as two defenders stripped her before she got a shot off.
The result? Zero points. Through Ward’s storied career, it was just her third college game ever without registering at least one point. The other two came in her freshman season, when Ward rarely touched the field before emerging as a starter after a few injuries.
Even against Virginia Tech, when Syracuse suffered its first loss against an unranked opponent since 2018, Ward ended with five points, but three came in the final five minutes. She tied Katie Rowan’s all-time assists record with her three assists, but it was too little, too late. As Ward failed to score early, the Orange fell behind 8-4 at halftime and never led. Ward had eight shot attempts, but was stymied by VT goalie Aaliyah Jones, only scoring twice as SU trailed by five in the fourth quarter.
“I didn’t think Emma had a good game today,” Treanor said postgame of her star scorer. “I don’t think anyone really did.”
Ward’s three-game cold streak goes hand in hand with the Orange’s. But it’s a consequence of the weight put on Ward’s shoulders all season. Even through an injury, where her bruised hand required a men’s lacrosse glove for protection, she’s yet to miss a game.
Through the three-game stretch, she’s averaging two points and one goal per game. Outside of the slump, she’s averaged 4.5 points.
Ward was able to hold her ground at times. But now, in the most important time of the year, teams have figured her out. Ultimately, they’ve figured out the Orange, too.
