Defensive improvements propel No. 6 Syracuse to narrow 1-0 win vs. No. 7 Duke
No. 6 Syracuse was outmatched in its first two games of ACC play, but its defense stepped up to secure a 1-0 shutout win over No. 7 Duke. Keenan Sawada | Contributing Photographer
Get the latest Syracuse news delivered right to your inbox. Subscribe to our sports newsletter here.
Duke’s Alaina McVeigh prepared to insert a penalty corner, looking for the equalizer late in the third period while trailing Syracuse 1-0.
It was an all-too-familiar scenario for the Orange. In each of its last two matches, Syracuse scored first, only to falter late. With Duke’s offense surging and SU’s defense on the ropes, the Blue Devils seemed poised to follow a similar blueprint.
This time, when McVeigh inserted it, Syracuse stood tall.
No. 6 SU’s (7-2, 1-2 Atlantic Coast) defense propelled its 1-0 win over No. 7 Duke (5-3, 2-1 ACC) Friday, shutting out the Blue Devils for its fourth clean sheet win of the season. The win marked Syracuse’s first conference win after losses to No. 3 Virginia and then-No. 20 Wake Forest.
“We were hungry for a win,” SU midfielder Lieke Leeggangers said postgame. “We really wanted to work hard. We said we’re (going to be) the hardest working team on (J.S. Coyne Stadium).”
In their first two ACC games, the Orange were outworked defensively, allowing their opponents to build momentum they never relinquished. Against the Blue Devils, Syracuse’s defensive press ensured that wouldn’t repeat.
The Orange played out from the back, forcing Duke’s offense into tight passes that were often intercepted. Even when the Blue Devils’ Ava Cickavage earned a one-on-one opportunity against SU’s Tane King, her shot veered wide.
The Blue Devils upped their offensive aggression after Cickavage’s miss, pulling goalkeeper Kaiya Chepow with four minutes to go, but the Orange matched the increase in physicality. Syracuse’s defense neutralized Duke’s desperate attacks, keeping the ball on its side of the field as the clock ran out.
“There was a difference today in the energy in the fourth quarter,” SU head coach Lynn Farquhar said. “We came off with blood on fingers, with somebody else being taken out, and we still maintained the possession of the ball.”
While Syracuse’s defensive effort in the second half was the difference maker, the Orange were just as strong in the first half. Late in the first period, Grace O’Connor blocked a shot from McVeigh right in front of Syracuse’s net after McVeigh dribbled into the penalty circle.
Minutes later, the Orange blocked another point-blank chance for the Blue Devils, with Danique Schuurman disturbing Macy Szukics’ shot at the end of the first period.
Coming into Friday’s matchup, Syracuse had plenty of motivation. With the 2015 national-championship-winning squad in attendance for Alyssa Manley’s jersey retirement, the Orange looked to honor the program’s past.
Their extra energy on defense translated to offense. The heart of SU’s backline, graduate student Bo van Kempen, scored her 16th goal of the season in the first period off a penalty corner pass from midfielder Liz Stange.
“We moved the ball well,” Farquhar said. “It started from the back line. We didn’t just defend, but our defenders were the first line of our attack.”
The defense’s contributions in attack, highlighted by van Kempen’s goal, also helped SU’s offense overcome another tough day. After starting the season as one of the most productive frontlines in the country, Syracuse’s attack has scored just one goal per game in ACC play.
That number is a stark drop-off from the five per game the Orange averaged coming into their conference slate. But with the defense stepping up, Syracuse has the blueprint to win games even when the goals aren’t coming in bunches.
“A 1-0 score is good, but we definitely want to score more goals,” Leeggangers said. “We’re getting there, but we just need to finish now.”
Against No. 20 Penn State, SU’s backline will aim to replicate its strong defensive showing and regain the form that helped the Orange before their two-game skid.
“We’ve got to figure out what it means to come together, and we’re doing it. We’re working it out,” Farquhar said. “Today was an opportunity to do so, and we showed up.”
