No. 13 Syracuse falls 8-6 to No. 3 Stanford, marks 1st 0-3 start since 2001
Against its second top-3 opponent this season, No. 13 Syracuse fell to No. 3 Stanford 8-6, capping its early-season gauntlet. Zoe Xixis | Asst. Photo Editor
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The somber recollections of Syracuse’s Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament exit stayed with it over the last 10 months. And that’s all thanks to Stanford.
While the Orange recovered with an NCAA Tournament victory over Brown just over two weeks later, the Cardinal’s win marked the first time SU was a first-game exit in the conference tournament in nearly three years.
There’s no denying Syracuse was dealt a gauntlet of a schedule, and it nearly always enters matches as the underdog. That stemmed from a blowout loss to Boston College to cap its 2025 regular season, and multiple facets that made the Orange the intimidating force they once were have gone downhill since.
“We got to shoot the ball better, and we certainly got to clear up the clearing,” SU head coach Regy Thorpe said Wednesday. “And then clean up the green card.”
Shooting has plagued Syracuse all year. Its loss to then-No. 7 Maryland on Feb. 6 showcased that, as it connected on only 13.2% of its attempts. While that ballooned to 45% last week in a defeat to top-ranked North Carolina, Thorpe said it best — the Orange have ways to go.
Their leading scorer last year, Tewaaraton Award Watch List member Emma Muchnick, only had two goals in her last three games entering Friday’s duel. The senior is one of several players who have looked like a shadow of their full potential.
But SU invigorated its potential to keep games close against the Tar Heels despite trailing by over six goals against the Terrapins.
Friday was the closest No. 13 Syracuse (0-3, 0-2 ACC) came to tasting victory, but it couldn’t flip the demoralizing script defining its season thus far in an 8-6 defeat to No. 3 Stanford (4-0, 2-0 ACC). The Orange never led but were tied with the Cardinal until under six and a half minutes remained. Stanford leading scorer Aliya Polisky surged for two late points after a quiet first three quarters. Molly Guzik and Caroline Trinkaus nabbed two goals apiece, but a suffocating Stanford defense doomed the Orange.
“It’s all about playing a full 60,” Thorpe said Wednesday. “We played 45 minutes of good lacrosse versus UNC, but you got to play a full 60 or more against teams like Carolina, Maryland and going into Stanford.”
Syracuse made sure to optimize the first of the game’s 60 minutes, with Guzik winning the first draw, her ninth draw win of the year. However, the Orange crumbled at the brink of maximizing their first possession, with Ashlee Volpe rifling wide left.
The miscue set the tone for the rest of the quarter. Although the two sides traded blows early, Stanford stormed back on its first possession after a clear. Just over a minute and a half in, Polisky glided toward the crease and flung the ball to Jordyn Case. Goalkeeper Daniella Guyette didn’t stand a chance.
After exchanging her draw stick, Guzik traversed upfield to draw a free-position shot, taking a pair of steps before flinging the ball past Lucy Pearson to knot the game at 1-1. Converting attempts like those were something Thorpe had challenged Guzik to take from practice into games.
“She’s generating a lot of shots. She’s got to bury more,” Thorpe said of the sophomore Wednesday. “She makes plays, and she’s always going to have more shots than her teammates. She watches a lot of film, and she’s going to get better as the season goes.”
Still just three and a half minutes in, the goals kept coming. Coco Vandiver knocked Ava Arceri, who also netted a free position. A couple of possessions later, Syracuse marched back downfield, spreading the rock before Guzik unleashed a cross-body strike into the top left corner.
The contest descended into a two and a half minute scoring drought, but one Cardinal possession subsequently ended it. Mallory Hasselbeck — the No. 1 recruit in Inside Lacrosse’s 2021 rankings — galloped at the 12-meter fan and found a crossing Lindsey Devir to punish Guyette.
Thorpe said Wednesday he hoped to get his goalies accustomed to the grass at Laird Q. Cagan Stadium, “getting different bounces on the shots, especially the low ones.” While Guyette made strong low saves, notching her best save percentage of the season (52.9%), the higher pegs plagued her, including Polisky’s 12th goal of the season in the third quarter.
On an SU woman-up advantage, Gracie Britton scattered around the net, ripping a pass to Guzik goalside. Flipping her hips, the sophomore hopped the ball over Pearson to Volpe, who rose for a lefty strike. Another Orange player who’s adept with her sinistral hand is midfielder Bri Peters, who later ripped twine.
Poised, Syracuse executed every clear for the first time in a half this season with 10, while Stanford had 11. But the Orange lacked chances thanks to Stanford’s elongated possessions, and one of their few of the quarter came with a mishandled Peters free-position attempt.
The fourth quarter has been a period where the Orange have crumbled. Maryland jumped out for two early tallies to reach a six-goal advantage two weeks ago. In last week’s matinee with North Carolina, the Tar Heels exploded for a 5-2 fourth-frame advantage.
Friday was different. Recycling the ball throughout the offense, Mackenzie Rich worked from behind the net, flipping a pass to Trinkaus on a back-door cut for a finish. The duo linked up again near the 10-minute mark to tie the game at six.
SU hadn’t been tied this deep in a game this season. But the lead was too good to be true. After all, Polisky is inevitable.
The redshirt junior fed Devir inside with a crafty pass for her second goal, breaking the 6-6 tie. Polisky took matters into her own hands 49 seconds later. Stanford’s two leading scorers connected, with Hasselbeck finding a crossing Polisky, flinging a screamer past Guyette for the dagger.
The Cardinal dominated the final five minutes, lacing five shots on net to SU’s one.
The Orange dropped to 0-3 under first-year head coach Regy Thorpe, drifting yonder from their glory days atop the ACC’s throne.
“Kids come to Syracuse because they want to play the best,” Thorpe said Wednesday.
