Get the latest Syracuse news delivered right to your inbox. Subscribe to our sports newsletter here.

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Lacrosse games are not won in the first quarter. They are not won in the first half. They are not won in the first three quarters. Lacrosse games are wars of attrition, waged over four quarters and 60 minutes of play, only interrupted by the brief 10-minute halftime respite, where both teams retreat into their locker rooms to discuss things only they can discuss. “Adjustments” and whatnot.

It’s a damn shame for Syracuse that this is the case, because it’s become adept at winning the first quarter, half and, on some occasions, the first three quarters. But against high-level opponents, the Orange just cannot seem to win all four, no matter how hard they try.

SU’s had worse games. Its Feb. 27 loss to Princeton was particularly bad; it didn’t lead after any of the four quarters then. Same goes for its April 4 loss, one that came against this very North Carolina squad. In some ways, Friday’s result could be seen as progress, a moral victory for the Orange as they head into the NCAA Tournament.

But as the clock crept closer to midnight, and Syracuse began filing out of American Legion Memorial Stadium, it’s impossible to escape the feeling that it just let one get away.

“Tough game, you know?” SU head coach Gary Gait said. “We competed really hard. I thought the effort was there, the energy was there, just a few too many mistakes to come out on top.”

On Friday night, No. 3 seed Syracuse (11-5, 2-2 Atlantic Coast) carried a 6-4 advantage over No. 2 seed North Carolina (12-3, 2-2 ACC) at the half. SU even exited the third quarter holding a slimmer, but still significant, 8-7 lead. But after getting outscored 5-2 over the final 15 minutes of play, the Orange were forced to bow out of the ACC Tournament Semifinals with a 12-10 loss to UNC.

The defeat dropped SU to 0-4 against teams sitting top five in Rating Percentage Index, the all-important metric defining a team’s NCAA Tournament candidacy.

“We’re still alive,” SU attack Joey Spallina said postgame. “We have much to play for.”

In all fairness, Spallina is correct. Fortunately for him, the Orange are virtually guaranteed to host a game in the NCAA Tournament. This is not the same scenario as last year, where SU sat on the bubble and was essentially forced to win this same tournament in order for a bid to compete for the national championship.
But Syracuse’s bid for a second-consecutive ACC championship is not, and it’s all because of its inability to win for 60 uninterrupted minutes.

It won the first quarter with stout defense, the kind that makes a world-beater like Owen Duffy look pedestrian if only for 15 minutes. Both sides only had a goal to show for it, but SU’s defense made life nightmarish for the Tar Heels early on, forcing multiple stalled possessions and eight UNC turnovers in the period.

“You know,” Gait began, “if it was just 6-on-6 defense, I thought we played pretty well.”

The Orange won the second quarter with timely shooting, the kind that seemingly finds an answer to everything that the opponent can throw their way. First it was Michael Leo, matching Brevin Wilson’s tally. Then it was Finn Thomson, Payton Anderson and Luke Rhoa scoring within a two-minute span to push the lead to three. And then it was Thomson again, answering Brady Wambach’s flurry with another timely score to preserve a multi-goal lead.

You could argue it didn’t really win the third, but even then, Syracuse did everything it needed to hold onto its lead. It exited the quarter clinging to its 8-7 advantage, and when Thomson finished off his hat trick in the fourth quarter to make it a two-goal game, it seemed the Orange were ready to assemble a 60-minute performance against a bonafide elite opponent.

At least until the wheels fell off. You’ve seen the story before. A couple ill-advised penalties, untimely turnovers, and all of a sudden, that two-goal lead is a two-goal deficit. This time, the infractions came from John Mullen and Billy Dwan III — the former for tripping, the latter for an illegal body check that did nothing to prevent Anthony Raio from tying the game up at 9-9 for UNC.

“I think that a couple of penalties in the fourth didn’t help us there,” Gait said. “That was a tough stretch, which gave them the opportunity to take that lead, and really make it tough for us.”

It was an opportunity the Tar Heels optimized. The Orange went over 10 minutes without scoring in the fourth quarter and gave up four goals in that span to seal their fate. There would be no celebration at American Legion Memorial Stadium for Syracuse this year. The bitter taste of defeat would have to do for now.

Three days before Friday’s loss, Gait was asked to confront his team’s inability to play a full four quarters. It wasn’t anything new. Last Saturday against No. 1 Notre Dame, his team carried an 8-7 advantage at halftime but wilted late as the Fighting Irish escaped with a 16-11 win.

Thus, begging the question: What is it going to take for Syracuse to play a full 60 minutes?

“It’s all mental,” Gait said Tuesday at his media availability. “You gotta put yourself in a mindset where you’re hungry, you’re energized, you’re willing to execute and leave it on the field. … And as coaches, we try and motivate them.”

Thus, begging the natural follow-up question. Gait says it’s all mental, that it’s up to him and his coaching staff to get SU’s players in the proper mindset to bring a complete effort for 60 minutes. That may be the case, but the Orange evidently were not prepared to play all four quarters on Friday.

So, to that effect, did Gait feel he did an adequate enough job preparing his squad to play a complete 60 minutes heading into this contest?

“I thought we did a lot better job of staying focused throughout the entire 60,” Gait said postgame Friday. “But, like I said, we just didn’t make enough plays at the end of it.”

In layman’s terms, “a lot better” translates to “not good enough.” On Friday, his team showed up for the first quarter. They showed up for the second quarter. They even showed up for the third.

He can only hope that in a week from now, at the NCAA Tournament, he’ll finally find them during the fourth.

Published on May 1, 2026 at 10:32 pm
Contact Mauricio: mjpalmar@syr.edu | @mpalmarDO