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Syracuse women’s lacrosse’s already-demanding schedule has proved an early-season challenge. And it couldn’t be more difficult.

Then-No. 7 Maryland was a test for then-No. 11 SU, and handing it a 9-5 loss wasn’t shocking. But suddenly, the Terrapins placed second in the latest Inside Lacrosse poll.

The Orange knew what to expect with No. 1 North Carolina. Beating the reigning national champions and Chloe Humphrey was too good to be true despite a valiant effort.

And now, Stanford, ranked fifth ahead of the season, catapulted to No. 3. When glancing at the top three, it’s SU’s first three opponents. The Orange haven’t been 0-2 since 2001, and they’re on the verge of tacking on another loss.

Such a record would put Syracuse in uncharted territory. Things get easier for the Orange after Friday’s matchup, but eking out any of these three contests could aid them come May.

The Cardinal enter on an opposite trajectory with a 3-0 start. But SU proved its record doesn’t matter, pacing the Tar Heels for three quarters.

Here’s everything to know about No. 3 Stanford (3-0, 1-0 Atlantic Coast) before it faces No. 13 Syracuse (0-2, 0-1 ACC):

All-time series

Syracuse leads 3-2.

Last time they played

Riding an 8-5 halftime lead in the ACC Tournament First Round on April 23, 2025, No. 6 seed SU crumbled in its 15-10 loss to No. 3 seed Stanford. The Orange entered off their first 15-goal loss in 20 years at an all-time low. Meanwhile, the win marked the Cardinal’s fifth in their last six.

Instead of big days for SU’s plus-30-goal scorers Emma Muchnick, Emma Ward and Caroline Trinkaus, SU’s supporting cast stepped up offensively. Gracie Britton and Alexa Vogelman bagged hat tricks and Joely Caramelli scored a brace. The Orange also succeeded on the draw through eight Meghan Rode wins.

A game after being pulled for Allie Hanlon, Daniella Guyette stopped just three of Stanford’s 15 shots on goal. Rylee Bouvier and Aliya Polisky commanded the Cardinal’s offense with four goals apiece. The Cardinal won two more ground balls, executed four more clears and caused five more turnovers than the Orange in the lopsided affair.

The Cardinal report

This is a very similar Stanford squad that took down Syracuse, returning 26 players, adding eight and losing five this offseason. Its only significant departures were defenders Sophia Brindisi and Allison Baldwin, who combined for 58 ground balls, and midfielder Maddigan Miller, who supplied 15 goals.

Between the pipes stands reigning All-ACC Third Team member Lucy Pearson, who’s held steady with a 6.26 goals against average. Without Brindisi and Baldwin, the back line has weakened. The Cardinal ranked third in the ACC in ground balls and fourth in caused turnovers last year. Kate Bellissimo and Olivia Rose lead them with just five ground balls, and Kaleigh Sommers has forced the most giveaways by a defender with only four.

Up front, Polisky pursues a Tewaaraton-caliber season, already scoring 11 goals on just 16 shots. One of the Cardinal’s biggest additions was Boston College transfer Mallory Hasselbeck, Inside Lacrosse’s No. 1 recruit in the 2021 class, whose career was suppressed by injuries. Now at Stanford, the redshirt senior already has a career-high seven goals.

How Syracuse beats Stanford

It would be preposterous for the Orange not to attack Stanford’s feeble back line. It looks like a completely different squad without Brindisi, who made the All-ACC Second Team last year.

Syracuse’s attack may not be its best position group, but it has the tools to manipulate the Cardinal defense. Trinkaus and Molly Guzik recently switched to the position and are now SU’s leading scorers.

Although it’s early, the Orange score the least amount of goals per game in the conference with just seven, while Stanford has the second-most with 17. Taking advantage of woman-up opportunities could prove beneficial, with SU being the only team in the ACC to score one per contest. This is especially important because the Orange have the worst shot accuracy in the conference at 24.1%.

Number to know: 65.4

No team in the country comes close to matching Stanford’s shot accuracy. A 65.4% clip has the Cardinal standing above the clouds, driven by Polisky’s 11-for-16 mark thus far. Hasselbeck has laced seven of her nine shots in the back of the net, with none of her attempts even going wide. In fact, the redshirt senior is one of five Stanford players to score on all of its shots on net.

Although it’s been three games, this is a drastic turnaround from last year for the Cardinal, who only scored 45.4% of their shots on goal last year, only 1.7% higher than SU. With a flipped script, it will only make Syracuse’s defense and Guyette even more cautious.

Player to watch: Aliya Polisky, attack, No. 24

Few players in the country have more impressive stretches than Polisky’s in the previous two seasons. She scored 118 goals, and her 65 tallies last year ranked fifth in the conference, averaging a hat trick.

The attack upped her production through three contests, notably delivering seven Monday against Vanderbilt. After scoring about 44% of her shots across her previous two campaigns, Polisky’s launched just shy of 70%.

After redshirting her first year at Stanford, the Franklin, Tennessee, native emerged on the All-Pac 12 First Team in 2024 and the All-ACC Team in 2025 following the Cardinal’s conference switch. Polisky entered this year as just one of three attacks on the Preseason All-ACC First Team alongside Humphrey and Virginia’s Madison Alaimo.

Published on February 18, 2026 at 10:29 pm
Contact Jason: jaglick@syr.edu | @jason_glick