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Chaotic is the best way to describe Syracuse’s 2025 campaign. It began with a rocky 3-2 start with two ranked defeats. It vastly improved afterwards with a six-game winning streak, SU’s longest under Gary Gait. But then mid-April hit. The Orange lost three straight games to Cornell, Duke and North Carolina, ending the regular season with a thud.

Entering the NCAA Tournament, though, the topsy-turvy nature of its regular season is no longer relevant from Syracuse’s perspective. It washed all concerns away by playing its best lacrosse of the year this past weekend, beating top-seeded Notre Dame and then Duke to capture its first Atlantic Coast Conference Championship since 2016.

So, as the Orange ride into the NCAA Tournament on their highest note of the season, it’s only fitting they host the team that delivered their first true blunder of 2025: Harvard. The Crimson enter the tournament with an at-large bid after falling to Princeton in the Ivy League Tournament Semifinals.

Here’s how our beat writers think No. 6 Seed Syracuse (11-5, 2-2 ACC) will fare in the first round of the NCAA Tournament versus Harvard (10-4, 4-2 Ivy League):

Cooper Andrews (10-6)
Calm, McCool and collected
Syracuse 13, Harvard 9

Jimmy McCool is long past his dreadful outing against the Crimson in February. That afternoon in the Dome, he got benched over five minutes into the third quarter after posting a .333 save percentage until that point, allowing 10 goals on 15 shots.

Gait still maintained confidence in McCool following this ordeal. Ever since, he’s arguably been Syracuse’s best player. At the least, he’s been its most consistent starter. And he’s exactly who the Orange will ride to victory with on Sunday. It will be a full-circle moment from two-and-a-half months ago.

McCool tallied a save percentage of .530 or above in each of SU’s last four games, including a .625 clip and 20 saves against Notre Dame to carry the Orange to the ACC Championship game. He wasn’t as effective against Duke in the final, though he remained stable with a .556 save percentage. There are no signs his hot streak won’t continue against Harvard. All he has to do is get over his demons — which he will.

From there, it’s pretty simple. Syracuse’s offense will do enough to pester freshman goalie Graham Stevens, and John Mullen will dominate at the faceoff X against a Harvard team with the third-worst team faceoff win rate in the country. Pencil in McCool holding the Crimson to single-digits, and the Orange moving onto the NCAA Quarterfinals.

Zak Wolf (9-7)
Sweet revenge
Syracuse 14, Harvard 11

The last time Syracuse lost to a team twice in a season at home was 1918 against The Onondaga Nation. Earlier this season, then-No. 15 Harvard shocked then-No. 6 SU in the Dome. That won’t happen again. After a rough patch where it lost three straight games, the Orange got back on track in Charlotte this past weekend with impressive wins over Notre Dame and Duke.

I will preface – I’m not the person to trust when picking games right now. I’ve missed six straight. However, I’m pretty confident in SU’s chances to exact revenge on Harvard. The Orange will be extra motivated to get the job done, given the stakes. The biggest advantage for Syracuse lies at the faceoff X. In the first meeting, Mullen went 28-of-31 at the faceoff X. He’s been scorching hot over the last two games, winning 79% of his faceoffs.

With Mullen, Syracuse can control time of possession and keep the ball away from Harvard’s dangerous offense, which averages the sixth-most goals in the country (14). Sam King (64 points) will be a handful, but Billy Dwan III and Riley Figueiras will do a good job containing him. Even if King gets clean looks, he has to beat McCool, who will be a massive factor.

McCool was benched in the last meeting after making just five saves on 15 shots. Though he’s entering the NCAA Tournament on a heater, after winning the ACC Tournament Most Valuable Player. McCool is a different player than two months ago. Syracuse is too, which is why it’ll advance to the Quarterfinals by beating Harvard.

Nicholas Alumkal (9-7)
Still dancing
Syracuse 13, Harvard 10

The 107 years since SU lost to a team twice in a season, previously mentioned by my fellow scribe Zak, is mind-blowing. It shows the historical dominance Syracuse has had over the lacrosse world. The Orange are rediscovering that supremacy this campaign after winning the ACC Tournament, and they won’t let their season end with a second loss to Harvard Sunday.

I don’t want to say the first defeat was a fluke, but a lot went wrong during the game, especially on defense for SU, including McCool’s benching. Now, McCool has a new lease on life, capturing the ACC Tournament MVP after career-high 20-save and 10-save displays in the semifinal and championship, respectively. With a sea of arrows in the form of shots coming at him, McCool has been sharper than a porcupine’s backside.

One area Syracuse reigned supreme in the first meeting was at the faceoff X. Mullen has won 66.1% of faceoffs in the JMA Wireless Dome and enters the matchup with incandescent form at the ACC Tournament. Trying to win a faceoff against him is like trying to wrestle with a ghost — the moment the ref’s whistle blows, you’re already a step behind. By the time you react, he’s already won, moving at a speed that makes it seem like he’s heard the whistle a second before it even blows.

With special teams fueling the Orange and the momentum of winning the ACC Tournament, Syracuse enters its matchup with Harvard ready to make the most of its second shot. This time, with the season on the line, SU won’t falter.

Published on May 8, 2025 at 12:02 am