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

When Syracuse played Loyola in February, the Orange were reeling off three straight losses to begin the season, looking for any resemblance of life. If SU lost that game, perhaps it’d be time to panic after its first 0-4 start in over 25 years.

But Syracuse prevailed, beating the Greyhounds 15-7 for a much-needed victory. It sparked a torrid 12-game win streak that allowed the Orange to climb as high as No. 3 in the Inside Lacrosse poll before losing their season finale to Boston College.

And while SU bowed out of the Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament in the second round, the stellar regular season was more than enough to get it into the NCAA Tournament. While the Orange weren’t seeded, they still entered the tournament as one of the best squads in their quadrant of the bracket — all thanks to the momentum they gained from that win over Loyola in February.

This time, Syracuse entered a battle with the Greyhounds on the complete opposite end of that momentum. The result was still the same.

Here are some observations from SU’s (14-5, 7-3 ACC) 8-6 NCAA Tournament First Round win over Loyola (12-8, 7-2 Patriot League) Friday:

Mellowing Murphy

It seems like every Syracuse game is going to have questions swirling around the draw. But it makes sense. It’s been SU’s greatest weakness this season, having lost the battle in 11 of 16 regular-season games and both ACC Tournament matchups.

The task Friday wasn’t much easier against the nation’s top draw specialist in Mae Murphy. The freshman’s 230 draw controls were the most in the nation entering the NCAA Tournament. Syracuse was never going to beat Murphy, but all it needed to do was compete with her. And it did, despite losing the draw battle 11-5.

Molly Guzik held her own in the circle in the first half, besting Murphy with four wins to Loyola’s three. It paid dividends in the first half with a few goals, giving the Orange perhaps more possession than expected. It showed on the scoreboard, too, as SU entered the half up 4-2.

Loyola flipped the fortune in the second half, though, and it showed from the jump. Murphy won the first two draws of the third quarter and eventually won the battle 8-1 in the second half. It solidified yet another game where the Orange lost the contest in the circle.

The one caveat of this constant, nagging issue is that it hasn’t affected SU much. The Orange overcame those struggles more often than not in the regular season and still put together one of the best resumes in the sport. That proved to be the case again Friday, as Syracuse prevailed.

Goalie wars

Syracuse goaltender Dan Guyette doesn’t like to think much in big games. She’ll often fill her mind with music or playful — sometimes even “childlike” — thoughts. It’s all to keep herself as relaxed as possible in a job that is anything but.

Perhaps no setting can knock a goaltender off their game like the NCAA Tournament, though. Guyette’s even had some tough outings in last year’s postseason run. But not this time. Not on Friday.

Guyette made six saves for a 50% save percentage to fuel a stellar night from SU’s defense. On the other end, Loyola’s Kennedy Buntrock had an impeccable game as well, making a career-high 14 saves. But SU eventually broke her down enough times to win.

Guyette made five saves and allowed just two goals in the first half. Her first of the day was a shot from Mim Suares-Jury that nearly snuck through Guyette’s legs, but a stick save kept the Greyhounds off the board. She followed it up with two more smooth stops a minute later to keep the Orange up 1-0.

Buntrock stood tall to withstand a quick flurry from SU right after, making two straight saves to thwart Syracuse’s chance to double the lead. Eventually, Delaney Jackson opened the scoring for Loyola off a feed from Emma Talago toward the end of the first quarter. Guyette made two more timely stops in the second and allowed just one more goal to give the Orange some breathing room at the half. Buntrock, meanwhile, had seven saves in the first half.

Between untimely turnovers and SU’s stout defense, Guyette didn’t have to do much in the third quarter to limit the Greyhounds. Lauren Perfetto placed an uncontested shot past Guyette late in the frame to make it 5-3, but Loyola’s momentum ran dry for the remainder of the quarter. Buntrock fought for the Greyhounds’ life in goal and kept them afloat.

Guyette allowed three goals in the fourth, some of her only stains on a solid performance. She did just enough to shut the door on the Greyhounds and help SU advance. Buntrock, despite her heroics, saw her Loyola squad sent home.

Trinkaus tallies 3

Caroline Trinkaus was one of just three scorers on either team with multiple goals Friday, but her three absolutely made the difference in the game. The SU attack logged her fourth hat trick and ninth multi-goal game of the year to lead the Orange offensively.

Her first goal of the afternoon opened the scoring, getting her hands free on the run and ripping a shot into the cage to make it 1-0 Syracuse at the 12:03 mark in the first quarter.

She found her next two goals in the third, first striking about halfway through the frame off a feed from Mileena Cotter. She completed her hat trick by evading a Loyola defender and flinging a shot into the bottom right corner while falling to the ground. It put Syracuse up 6-3 at the 2:37 mark in the third, a lead it never relinquished.

The performance brought Trinkaus to second on SU with 27 goals, continuing a stellar sophomore campaign after a 32-goal freshman year.

Published on May 8, 2026 at 9:19 pm
Contact Harris: harrispemberton@gmail.com | @HarrisPemb6