Jessie Eiselin embraced competition for Syracuse field hockey starting spot
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Jessie Eiselin described it as a feeling. Intuition. She had to pick a side. Maybe even before the Virginia player across from her. Syracuse field hockey’s hopes of advancing to the 2025 Atlantic Coast Conference Championship hung in the balance.
Typically, Eiselin waits. Searches for clues in the shooter’s position. Then, she reacts.
But she couldn’t save a penalty stroke in Syracuse’s ACC Tournament-opening win over Wake Forest the day prior. And the weekend before, in SU’s regular-season finale versus Louisville. Against Virginia, the misses were on her mind.
So she pivoted. Instead of waiting, she wagered.
She bet wrong. The Cavaliers scored. The game was over.
“Everyone on the pitch can make mistakes,” Eiselin said. “But if we make a mistake, it’s a goal. I think that pressure is good for me.”
Syracuse’s senior goalkeeper has never shied from pressure. She transferred from Monmouth to SU before her junior season “to play ACC field hockey.” Eiselin embraced competing for Syracuse’s starting spot and, eight days after losing in the ACC Tournament against UVA, helped the Orange to their first NCAA Tournament win since 2023 with a crucial penalty-stroke save against Liberty.
In 2026, Eiselin’s owned SU’s cage. The Dutch goalie has started five of Syracuse’s six games, finishing her last three starts.
Syracuse goalie Jessie Eiselin makes a shootout save during her squad’s 3-2 victory over UMass Lowell on Sept. 18. She’s had shootout success before, as she helped the Orange to a 2025 NCAA Tournament win. Tara Deluca | Photo Editor
Aside from Syracuse’s 10-0 domination of Bucknell, its M.O. has been gritty wins that lean on its reworked backline, defensive penalty corner unit and Eiselin. As a result, the Orange started 5-1 and rank 11th nationally.
Before joining Syracuse in 2025, Eiselin starred at Monmouth in the Coastal Athletic Association. She was named to the National Field Hockey Coaches Association Division I Watch List as a sophomore and the CAA All-Rookie Team the year before. She’s posted similar numbers in 25 games with the Orange (1.34 goals-against average and .726 save percentage) as her two seasons with the Hawks (1.69, .775).
Eiselin said she felt ready for ACC competition, settling on Syracuse for its friendly intensity. Fellow goalie Tane King said players participate in informal competitions before and after practice, or in the weight room, like who can do the most pull-ups.
“We’re competitive about every small thing,” Eiselin said. “That’s really fun.”
That competitive outlook comes in handy when Eiselin squares off against a close friend for playing time. She didn’t simply assume the starting role when she arrived. In 2025, she regularly played first halves before King stepped between the sticks in the second.
Eiselin said she knew she’d have to compete for consistent playing time, citing King’s strength as a freshman. But even as they jostled for SU’s starting spot this season, they supported each other, forming a “goalie community” between Eiselin, King and freshman Addie Youree.
“We’ve competed every single practice, and we’re making each other better,” Eiselin said. “(We) lift each other up because we also know there is only one spot to fill. I’m very grateful that we can still be friends and cheer each other on when the other is on the field. I could never do it without her.”
“We don’t compete necessarily against each other,” King added. “We compete more for ourselves to get better and earn that playing time.”
A goalie’s performance is rooted in mistakes. If they falter, no players can make up for them. Eiselin said that’s why she fell in love with goaltending when she was first put in net at age 12.
Eiselin wants responsibility. But she appreciates sharing its weight with King, saying their relationship instills her with confidence.
“In practices, sometimes you mess up,” Eiselin said. “But we’re here for each other.”
Before SU played Wake Forest in the 2025 ACC Tournament First Round, then-Syracuse goalie coach Sally Rutherford informed Eiselin she’d start. Rutherford added that, if Eiselin was playing well at halftime, she’d stay.
In practices, sometimes you mess up, but we’re here for each other.Jessie Eiselin, Syracuse goalkeeper
Through 30 minutes, Eiselin had two saves and a clean sheet. She remained in net and delivered a season-high nine stops in Syracuse’s 3-1 playoff win. Eiselin said it was the first game she felt the competition slip away.
“She was really happy for me and that I did that for the team,” Eiselin said of King. “I think that really helps.”
A week and a half later, in the NCAA Tournament First Round, Eiselin avenged her penalty stroke miss against Virginia. This time, facing Liberty’s Julieta Tornati 80 minutes in, Eiselin waited. Tornati tipped off the shot, and Eiselin saved it with her left pad. Three shooters later, after scores from Taylor Bigbie and Aubrey Turner, Syracuse won.
This season, head coach Lynn Farquhar continues to keep her cards close. She flip-flopped Eiselin and King at halftime during Syracuse’s first two games against Fairfield and Northeastern, saying afterward she liked their competition. Farquhar said both goalies made her choice difficult.
Although Eiselin has assumed the starting role, Farquhar went with King against Bucknell, when the sophomore recorded her first-career shutout.
“We’ll surprise you this Friday,” Farquhar said on Sept. 16 regarding Syracuse’s starter before its home opener versus UMass Lowell.
When the veil lifted against the River Hawks, Eiselin was there. She stayed in after halftime. Then 15 minutes of overtime. Then a shootout.
The game rested on her shoulders. Was she nervous about making a mistake no teammate could cover up?
“I don’t get nervous before a game,” Eiselin said. “I just get excited.”
It ended on her pad. She dismissed a desperate whack from UMass Lowell’s Karli Penrod. Eiselin then lifted herself off the pitch before enthusiastically tossing aside her gloves and helmet, just in time to be mobbed by her teammates in front of her net.
Assistant Digital Editor Jack Wood contributed reporting to this article.
