First-half miscues thwart SU in evenly-matched 1-0 loss to BC
A series of misplaced passes and defensive errors in the first half doomed Syracuse in its 1-0 defeat to Boston College Sunday. Christian Calabrese | Asst. Photo Editor
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It was smooth sailing for Syracuse. Thirty one minutes in, the Orange were even with Boston College on just about every level imaginable.
Neither team had found the scoresheet yet. After Anna Croyle fired her shot wide left for SU, the Orange found themselves even with the Eagles at three shots apiece. If anything, the only statistic separating the two sides was a second-minute BC corner kick.
Both squads entered their Sunday matchup in the bottom five of the Atlantic Coast Conference, and they appeared to be about as evenly matched as two teams could be. Still anyone’s contest, it seemed like a game of chicken in which the first mistake had the potential to decide the outcome.
And as it turns out, it did. The Orange (5-7-4, 1-6-1 ACC) blinked first in their 1-0 defeat to Boston College (5-6-5, 1-5-2 ACC) Sunday, committing a series of miscues that giftwrapped the Eagles a lead late in the first half. A sequence that began with a misplaced Natalie Magnotta pass ended with a Syracuse handball in the box off of a corner kick, giving BC a penalty kick opportunity in the 33rd minute.
Boston College defender Amalia Dray stepped to the spot. She rifled her shot left, past the outstretched arms of a diving Shea Vanderbosch. In a contest in which both teams were separated by a single shot, the mistakes that produced her strike proved to be the fatal difference for SU.
“I think BC capitalized off of our mistakes,” Syracuse head coach Nicky Thrasher Adams said. “I don’t think they really created anything on their own.”
It was a sloppy match from the outset. Throughout the game’s first six minutes, neither team managed to generate much of anything offensively.
Early on, Magnotta drove the ball toward midfield attempting to start a counterattack. She quickly laid the ball off to Maya McDermott on the wing, who proceeded to give BC the ball by sailing her ensuing pass far out of bounds.
That instance was far from an exception to the rule. The Orange constantly misplaced passes throughout the day, failing to link their defense to their attack.
“We were having trouble literally just connecting from A to B. It’s a problem,” Adams said. “If we want to build, you gotta connect, right?”
Even the defense — which has consistently been SU’s most reliable unit this year — was having trouble in possession Sunday. Fifteen minutes after McDermott’s pass went awry, Ashley Rauch attempted to reset play for Syracuse, returning the ball to Bree Bridges on the backline.
Bridges’ subsequent touch was just a bit too heavy, and it gave the Eagles a golden opportunity just meters away from SU’s penalty box. Her dispossession forced Jasmine Nixon to scramble and make a standing tackle to ensure Boston College wouldn’t get on the board.
The next time the Orange defense faltered in possession, it wasn’t lucky enough to escape unscathed.
In the 32nd minute, after Croyle’s shot leveled Syracuse’s total with BC’s, SU had the ball with another opportunity to play out of back. Magnotta, controlling the ball, delivered a pass intended for Bridges that went just wide of the mark.
The ball was in no man’s land — laid out perfectly for Boston College forward Sadie Mathis — and with Bridges caught out of position, she had a golden opportunity to get off an unmarked shot. A line drive rocket came flying off of her foot, Vanderbosch had to dive right to dispatch the try and preserve the clean sheet.
Any relief she experienced was short-lived. The save resulted in a corner kick for the Eagles, which flew into the box and deflected off of Vita Naihin’s arm.
A video review confirmed Adams’ fears. Penalty kick, Boston College.
“I feel like, in the college game nowadays, I have no idea what a handball is,” Adams said. “Every game, you’re praying to God, ‘No handballs,’ because you never know if it’s going to be a handball or not.”
As Dray’s ensuing shot sunk into the back of the net, Syracuse’s hopes for a second consecutive ACC victory sank with it. Other than Mia Klammer — who produced four shots on the day — there was little going well for the Orange offensively.
Adams maintained that the Eagles weren’t dangerous on Sunday. She said they didn’t create much on their own, and most of their chances were the result of SU’s errors. It’s a perfectly fair assessment.
Though if the Orange continue to make these kinds of mistakes — misplaced passes and poorly-weighted touches — against ACC competition, then it won’t matter how dangerous the opposition is. They’ll always be one stray hand away from a loss.
