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

Entering Friday’s clash against Lindenwood, Syracuse desperately needed a get-right game. The Orange have faced a gauntlet of a schedule through 11 games, facing five top-7 opponents in the first month of their season. While SU stayed competitive early in many of those games, it ultimately went 0-5 and was outscored a combined 21-1.

With Syracuse traveling outside the East Coast for the first time this season to play Lindenwood in Missouri, it finally had an opportunity to shore things up on both sides of the puck. Not only was SU 44-10-4 all-time against the Lions entering Friday, but LU has also struggled mightily in the 2020s. Since 2019-20, Lindenwood was a pitiful 36-142-11 overall with just 25 conference wins.

As No. 6 Penn State and No. 4 Cornell loom on their schedule, Friday was essentially a must-win game for the Orange if they wanted to prevent themselves from unraveling.

So, with history on its side and 10 days of rest, would Syracuse take advantage of a Lindenwood team that was just 7-36-2 since the start of last season?

The answer, evidently, is yes. In thrilling fashion, Jordan Blouin scored a game-winning overtime goal to propel Syracuse (6-6, 4-1 Atlantic Hockey America) past Lindenwood (2-11, 1-4 AHA) 2-1 on Friday. Despite trailing 1-0 midway through the third period, Emma Gnade’s equalizer sent the game to overtime, where Blouin finished the Lions off.

When the Orange hosted Lindenwood on Feb. 1 last year, they got out to a blazing hot start. Stella Costabile’s goal six minutes in set the tone for a 5-0 rout, where Syracuse’s 16.7% shot rate propelled it to victory.

On Friday in Missouri, however, SU’s offense struggled to find a rhythm early. After a dormant first few minutes by both teams, Lindenwood began pressuring Syracuse goalie Ava Drabyk.

With fastbreaks to cross-ice dishes, the Lions’ aggression was evident. Yet, even with Lindenwood peppering Drabyk and SU’s backline with nine shots, they held steady to keep LU off the scoreboard.

Due to a Nea Tervonen trip, Lindenwood had the first power play of the game seven minutes into the first period. Michaela Paulinyova and Tatiana Blichova unleashed shots during the advantage but couldn’t cash in.

The failed power play was nothing new for the Lions. Their 9.1% rate coming into Friday was the second-worst in the AHA, only ahead of lowly Delaware at 1.9%.

Lindenwood had its best chance to break through in the waning minutes off the first period. On a clean pass from Molly Henderson, Bilchova’s slapshot was just a tad wide and off-target for what would’ve been her team-leading fourth goal of the season.

Missed opportunities on both sides led to an extremely even first period. Both teams had nine shots on goal, while the Lions won 10 faceoffs to SU’s seven.

But once the second frame rolled around, Syracuse quickly gained momentum offensively.

Shot after shot. Fastbreak after fastbreak. The Orange seemed to be in total control. Yet, despite SU’s shot barrage, LU goalie Lexington Secreto was even more impressive, denying everything that came her way.

Syracuse had numerous chances to pounce early in the second period and notched four shots within a 32-second span, but Secreto made several diving saves. Peyton Armstrong stared down Secreto on a fastbreak, but the Ohio State transfer had her glove ready to make a routine save.

Even with Lindenwood’s shortcomings this year, Secreto has consistently been a bright spot. Her 92.5% save rate ranks fourth in the AHA, and she recorded over 30 saves in four of her six appearances entering Friday. Early in the third period, her goaltending prowess continued.

As Jackson Kinsler raced down the ice with SU still in search of an elusive first goal, Secreto made another acrobatic save.

Lindenwood’s impenetrable defense eventually led to offense. Zsofia Pazmandi won a faceoff and fed Paulinyova down low, who tapped the puck into the net off a rebound. Paulinyova’s fourth goal of the year gave the Lions a 1-0 advantage with just over seven minutes remaining.

Paulinyova’s tally was yet another example of how SU’s faceoff struggles are its Achilles’ heel. Syracuse’s 49.3% faceoff win rate is just fifth in the conference, and despite the win, it lost the battle 39-29 Friday.

But LU’s lead only lasted for 17 seconds.

Even after losing the faceoff, Gnade easily recovered the puck and found a scoring lane. Without hesitation, she rifled a slapshot through Secreto’s arms and into the net to tie the game.

Neither team took command in the last five minutes, and for the second time this season, the Orange were heading to overtime.

In their lone overtime game this year, Celia Wiegand’s tally sealed a 2-1 victory over Delaware with just six seconds to go. On Friday, it didn’t take as long for SU to emerge victorious. On a Syracuse power play, Blouin weaved through two defenders, juking one completely before firing one into the net for the game-winner.

Jessica Cheung and Tervonen came running to give Blouin a celebratory hug, and the Orange continued their dominance over Lindenwood.

Syracuse’s missed opportunities may come back to haunt it against tougher competition. Scoring only two goals on 37 shots isn’t an impressive rate. But for a team that was in dire need of a win to get back to .500, it did its job.

Published on November 7, 2025 at 9:49 pm
Contact Spencer: sabrod@syr.edu | @spencerbrod20