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HEMPSTEAD, N.Y. — Syracuse’s historic 2025 season has hit a new stratosphere.

Despite blowing a five-goal lead in the second half, the Orange put together an offensive explosion and got enough stops late to upset Princeton, clinching the program’s first Final Four berth since 2013.

A massive eight-point performance from Joey Spallina, a Michael Leo hat trick and a three-point day by Sam English spearheaded SU’s offense. Princeton had a chance to tie the game late, but SU goalie Jimmy McCool sealed the win with a crucial save on Tucker Wade’s final shot.

Now, for the first time under head coach Gary Gait, the Orange are Final Four bound.

Here are some observations from No. 6 Syracuse’s (13-5, 2-2 Atlantic Coast) 19-18 win over No. 3 Princeton (13-4, 5-1 Ivy League) in the NCAA Quarterfinals at James M. Shuart Stadium:

22’s time to shine

Spallina is the man who doesn’t receive enough credit in victory, yet he’s one of the first to be blamed after losses.

There had been anticipation around when Spallina would deliver his signature moment donning SU’s famed No. 22. It’d have to come in the postseason for it to be meaningful. And he answered the bell resoundingly against Princeton in his homeland on Long Island, New York.

Spallina racked up a team-high four goals and dished out four assists, catapulting the Orange into the Final Four with the most memorable outing of his career. He went on an unprecedented three-goal personal scoring run in the second quarter to hand Syracuse a 9-7 lead. It was the most aggressive, well-executed lacrosse he’s ever played.

Dodging from the corner of the field before finishing in front of the cage? Pinpoint accuracy on point-blank chances? Clinical wraparounds from X? You name the move, Spallina perfected it.

The junior added a pair of third-quarter assists amid Syracuse’s unanswered tear of six goals, flashing his pinpoint distributing ability. Spallina tacked on two assists in the final quarter to close the contest out.

Saturday’s performance proved Spallina has taken the next step in his journey to absolute superstardom. He’ll look to cement himself as an all-time SU great on Championship Weekend.

A head-spinning shootout

Eleven combined goals within the first quarter set the tone for a head-spinning shootout Saturday. High-scoring battles featuring jaw-dropping plays from skilled players is a type of game Syracuse thrives in.

“Play fast, have fun — that’s old-school Syracuse lacrosse,” SU head coach Gary Gait said following a manic fourth quarter against Harvard where it scored seven goals.

Both sides implemented a high-octane offense with rapid ball movement, cutting and checking passes that fooled defenders — like when Princeton’s Chad Palumbo went behind the back to find Peter Buonanno to tie the game at 6-6. Innate accuracy, highlighted by Payton Anderson’s top-shelf finish while falling onto the turf, was on full-display. It was classic, high-flying Syracuse versus Princeton lacrosse. There wasn’t much either goalie could do.

The Orange had the Tigers right where they wanted them. And that’s why they won.

Down 11-10 entering the third quarter, Syracuse came out firing in the second half. A Sam English unassisted tally locked matters up at 11-11, then freshman attack Payton Anderson unleashed a point-blank attempt from the left flank to give SU a one-goal lead.

Those were the early stages of an Orange avalanche. They added four more goals to get to six unanswered. Michael Leo. Finn Thomson. Owen Hiltz. Then Hiltz again. SU outscored Princeton 6-1 in the third. A Palumbo goal, his fourth of the day, salvaged a four-goal deficit for the Tigers. But it appeared the damage was done.

Then Princeton answered emphatically.

It began the fourth quarter on an absurd 5-0 run, where the Orange didn’t win a faceoff and only got one save from goalie Jimmy McCool. All of a sudden, it was a 16-16 game.

Tyler McCarthy scored to put SU back ahead, but the Tigers answered with two straight goals capped by a Nate Kabiri rocket from the left flank. What Princeton did, though, Syracuse did better. Leo and Hiltz scored two goals in succession, while SU’s defense came through with a few late stops. A Thomson turnover gave the Tigers one final chance with one minute and three seconds left. And on Princeton’s final shot, McCool clutched up.

Game over.

Orange crushed by Palumbo

Princeton star senior Coulter Mackesy is one of the nation’s most lethal attacks. He entered Saturday as the team-leader in both goals (41) and points (60). Stopping him, which junior long pole Riley Figueiras got tasked with, would prove key for SU to pull off a quarterfinals upset.

Mackesy picked the Orange apart for a three-goal first half, helping spearhead Princeton’s offense to sustained production early. But he wasn’t responsible for most of the damage – it was Palumbo.

The junior attack ended the game with six goals and two assists, ripping off a team-high eight points. He scored a pair of goals amid a five-goal Princeton run in the fourth quarter to make the game incredibly tight. Mackesy was still a major threat, but Syracuse seemed to forget about Palumbo Saturday.

McCool gets pelted, but provides some stability

McCool, fresh off being named the ACC Goalie of the Year, went through the wringer in the first round against Harvard, posting a season-worst .294 save rate and allowing 12-of-17 shots to find twine. Considering his previous benching in Syracuse’s regular-season loss to the Crimson, perhaps the Boston native just gets the yips facing his hometown school.

But McCool’s shown a tendency to move on quickly. Subpar games often weren’t followed by another. And that remained against Princeton. Despite getting pelted by Tigers’ shots, he accumulated a respectable .400 save percentage.

McCool started poorly, but it’s tough to cast blame on him. His eyes stuck with the Tigers’ ball movement on most possessions. He managed to thwart 12 total shots. He just didn’t receive much protection from his long poles early on.

McCool saved 9-of-20 shots by halftime, then started the second half in the penalty box after an infraction to end the second quarter. Michael Ippoliti replaced McCool for four minutes and the Tigers didn’t score in that timeframe. A pumped-up McCool greeted Ippoliti before running back between the pipes.

Though he only made three saves while allowing seven goals afterwards, Mackesy and Palumbo’s dominant performances against SU’s long-poles meant McCool didn’t have much to work with in front of him.

Faceoffs, faceoffs, faceoffs

Pretty much any other school offers a tougher challenge at the faceoff X than Harvard. SU faceoff specialist John Mullen exploded for a 24-of-28 game versus Harvard last round, a follow-up from his scintillating 28-of-31 performance back in February against the Crimson.

However, Princeton elicited little-to-no concern for Mullen’s outlook at the center dot Saturday. The Tigers came into the day with a .459 team faceoff win rate, the 20th-worst total in the country, while the Orange boasted the fifth-best clip in Division I (.615).

Mullen seemed primed to take advantage of Princeton’s Andrew McMeekin and Koby Ginder. It didn’t start out well, though, with Mullen losing the opening faceoff on a violation before McMeekin beat him a second-straight time. McMeekin would not go down easily.

Mullen and McMeekin engaged in a tight faceoff battle — with a few appearances from SU’s Johnny Richiusa, too. In an intense tug of war at the faceoff X, Princeton came out on top as the Orange lost 22-of-39 overall attempts. Mullen only finished 16-of-33. But he was on his game when he needed to be, winning a string of fourth-quarter faceoffs to keep SU’s offense on the field during a back-and-forth final 15 minutes.

Princeton may have earned more possessions. But the Orange accomplished more with theirs.

Published on May 17, 2025 at 6:07 pm
Contact Cooper at: ccandrew@syr.edu | @cooper_andrews