Syracuse’s late comeback falls short in 6-5 loss to Pitt
After an exhilarating 9-6 win Thursday, Syracuse returned to the loss column with a 6-5 defeat to Pitt Friday. Charlie Hynes | Staff Photographer
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Syracuse and Pitt’s rivalry is far from new.
Before the Orange and Panthers moved to the Atlantic Coast Conference in 2013, they were Big East foes for over a decade. From 2002-14, SU won 14 of the squads’ 20 meetings, including a seven-game win streak between 2007 and 2009.
Syracuse’s dominance continued in the ACC. The Orange won 13 of their first 18 games against Pitt before the Panthers took 2-of-3 in an April 2024 series.
Both teams were in need of a pulse entering the most recent iteration of their rivalry Thursday. Syracuse had lost seven straight games to open ACC play, while the Panthers were 1-4 over their last five.
It took 179 pitches from Madison Knight and over three hours, but SU prevailed 9-6 in eight innings after nearly squandering a five-run lead. For the first time since April 27, 2025, Syracuse had momentum in the ACC.
But the Orange wouldn’t have enough for an encore. Syracuse (12-15, 1-8 ACC) fell 6-5 to Pitt (19-17, 5-9 ACC) Friday afternoon. SU starting pitcher Julianna Verni allowed six runs, and the Orange’s offense mustered just three hits. They cut a four-run deficit to one in the fifth inning, but Pitt reliever Allie Lukaszewicz shut the door.
Slow starts plagued SU across its seven-game skid. The Orange had a pitiful negative-19 first-inning run differential before breaking through early Thursday.
While Syracuse led 2-0 in the second inning Thursday, Pitt didn’t waste time getting to work early Friday. Verni escaped a first-inning jam, but Gracie Helton and Ahmari Braden singled to start the second. After Braden stole second base, Addison Tozek’s sacrifice fly scored Helton to put the Panthers up 1-0.
Yet just like Thursday, the Orange showed significant fight offensively. With one out and two runners on, Madelyn Lopez singled to tie the game. Then, on a wild pitch, Jadyn Burney scored from third to put SU in front 2-1.
It was a much-needed hit for Lopez. The senior was an abysmal 3-of-22 at the plate over her last 10 games entering Friday, and her .241 batting average this season is a far cry from her .430 mark in 2025.
Despite a relatively clean third inning, Verni began to spiral in the fourth. After a Shelby Frazier groundout, Helton laced a single to shallow right field. Two batters later, Toczek continued her stellar series with a hit.
Following a Tieley Vaughn walk, Verni hit Mackenzie Reese with a pitch to even the score. With the bases still loaded and two outs, Verni just had to retire KK Esparza to get out of the inning.
Esparza had other plans.
The graduate student, who had a team-high seven homers entering Friday, hit a grand slam down the left-field line to put Pitt up four. Esparza had already had four or more RBI in a game twice this season. On Friday, she broke the game open with one swing.
The inning was a microcosm of Verni’s season thus far. She entered Friday with a 6.33 ERA, allowing seven-plus runs four times. In SU’s 10-0 loss to NC State last Sunday, the senior was shelled for nine hits and seven runs.
Still, the Orange wouldn’t go down without a fight in the fifth. Burney kickstarted a two-out rally with a walk before Lopez recorded her second hit of the game. Then, with Pitt starting pitcher Gwen Sparks hanging on by a thread, Knight blasted a three-run homer to cut SU’s deficit to 6-5.
Even amid a disastrous stretch, power hitting has been Syracuse’s forte. SU hit two home runs Thursday before Knight’s blast catapulted it back into the game.
Relieving Verni with Sydney Jackson probably seemed like the wrong decision at the time. Albeit in just seven full innings of work, Jackson has surrendered 16 runs and 14 walks this season.
But for the first time since Feb. 7, Jackson held her own. With Camryn Murphy on second and nobody out, Jackson struck out Frazier looking before retiring Helton and Braden to end the inning.
Though SU couldn’t generate any scoring opportunities in the sixth, Jackson kept it in the game with another scoreless frame. Her command was strong for the first time in nearly two months, and it was up to Syracuse’s lineup to keep the game going.
Similar to its first seven conference games, SU’s offense laid an egg. Lukaszewicz retired the Orange in order, putting the finishing touches on two near-flawless innings.
The loss wasn’t all doom and gloom. Syracuse’s last two games have been encouraging. But if Friday was any indication, it still lacks the firepower to truly compete in the ACC.
