Syracuse embarrassed by No. 3 Stanford in 4-0 loss
Syracuse conceded three goals in the first 10 minutes of its match with No. 3 Stanford Sunday, setting the tone for a 4-0 loss. Leopold Gensler | Contributing Photographer
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In Rita Mae Brown’s 1983 novel “Sudden Death,” the phrase “insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results” first appeared in writing. Syracuse has found itself staring directly at the cliché in Atlantic Coast Conference play.
SU’s defeat to California on Thursday extended its conference winless run to 32 games. Yet, head coach Nicky Thrasher Adams has continued with the same starting XI. She’s only made a change in one game, swapping out Maya McDermott because she wasn’t available. What once was a stellar defense and attack has turned ordinary in conference play. Shea Vanderbosch, who became SU’s program all-time saves leader Sunday, has made at least four saves in each ACC game.
Every time the Orange steps across the touchline in ACC play, it feels like the odds are stacked against them. Sunday was no different. Behind three goals in the opening ten minutes, No. 3 Stanford (9-1-1, 3-0-1 ACC) embarrassed Syracuse (4-5-4, 0-4-1 ACC) 4-0. Syracuse was outshot 36-5. The loss is the 45th time Syracuse has lost to an ACC opponent by two or more goals under Adams.
A 1-0 loss to the Golden Bears might make fans think Syracuse was on an upward trend, especially after consecutive 4-0 and 3-0 losses to ranked Florida State and Virginia.
Ten minutes at Stanford’s Maloney Field would make them think otherwise.
Within a minute, Jasmine Aikey’s intelligent flick over Bree Bridges opened up space. She needed someone to take a chance at the back post. Andrea Kitahata obliged and was there to tap the ball home for an early lead.
Stanford exploited the massive gaps between SU’s outside center backs and wing backs superbly. It was two in no time.
A clever one-two between Allie Montoya and Shae Harvey offered real estate for Montoya to deliver another cross into Vanderbosch’s six-yard box, where she found Eleanor Klinger. Her instinctive flick provided daylight between the Cardinal and Orange before SU got a chance to string a few passes together.
Then it turned from bad to worse for Syracuse. Elise Evans dug out a cross for Montoya, who snuck in front of Jasmine Nixon for her sixth goal of the season. It was 3-0 in the tenth minute. Halftime couldn’t come any quicker for Adams. She needed to make an adjustment.
But the interval didn’t stop Stanford’s momentum. Inside a minute of the restart, Harvey guided her header back into a crowded six-yard box. Aikey, who led the Cardinal with eight goals entering Sunday, got goalside of Bridges to tap it home for 4-0.
SU’s first shot attempt since the 10th minute came from Mia Klammer, which hit the underside of the crossbar. Gabby Wisbeck and Vita Naihin stung the glove of backup goalkeeper Alyssa Savig in the resulting passage of play, but couldn’t reduce the deficit.
A miscommunication between Vanderbosch and McDermott epitomized Syracuse’s lackluster away day. McDermott attempted to touch it back to her goalkeeper, unaware of the fact that Vanderbosch had gone to claim the ball herself. It should’ve led to a fifth goal for Stanford, but ultimately, it didn’t matter. The highest goal-scoring team in the nation had the game won within the first ten minutes.
Frankly, this is the expectation for Syracuse in the ACC. The 2025 and 2024 ACC Preseason Polls have labeled Syracuse as the worst team in the conference. In 2023, Syracuse finished in last place. Across Adams’ tenure, SU has only won three conference matches.
Syracuse is a broken record repeatedly playing the same losing song in the ACC.
It might be true that doing something over and over again doesn’t necessarily lead to insanity, but it does lead toward improvement. That just isn’t the case for SU. And nothing suggests it will change in the near future.
