Coming off a tough season opener against Colgate, Syracuse Men’s Lacrosse wins in a statement game against No.14 Albany. The Orange hoped to energize their offensive sticks and put more balls in the back of the net.
Syracuse quickly took a 1-0 lead after a goal from Jamie Trimboli in the first minute of play. The rest of the quarter was a back-and-forth matchup that contained four lead changes. A goal by Nate Soloman put the Orange ahead 4-3 going into the second quarter. The Orange started the game picking up eight more ground balls than their opponent which lead to more scoring opportunities and possessions. The ground balls lead to Syracuse outshooting Albany 19-6 at the start of this game.
In the second quarter, Syracuse tightened their grip on the lead. This started with Brad Voigt scoring his third goal of the season extending the lead to 5-3. Voigt and company scored three more goals to close the half. Going into the locker room with an 8-3 lead over the Great Danes. While Albany had the same amount of shots in this quarter, Syracuse dropped to only shooting nine in the second quarter. But all of the shots for the Orange were on target and either needed to be saved for went in for a goal.
The second half started slowly for both teams. Neither scored a goal in the first 12 minutes of the 15 minute quarter. The goal drought was ended by the fifth goal of the game for Voight. This goal was the only offensive action for either team in this half.
To start the final fifteen minutes of the game, UAlbany’s, Noah Taylor, scored a goal and tried to spark the offense. But a four-goal quarter for Syracuse put the game out of reach of the Great Danes. The Orange finished with 48 total shots on goal and collecting 44 ground balls. This clearly translated to the play on the field because they were able to score more goals than in their first game.
The standout in this game was Brad Voigt, who was shutout in the previous game against Colgate. Voight finished the night with six goals. Along with creating opportunities for himself, he also added an assist. His impressive scoring game was even more significant because he did not turn the ball over once in this game. Another player who had a multiple-goal game was Brendan Curry. Curry added two more goals to the three he had in the game against Colgate in this game. He also led his team in assists. Like Voigt, Curry also did not have a single turnover in this game. Goalkeeper, Drake Porter had a notable performance with 12 saves and only conceding five goals on 34 total shots.
The Syracuse’s next game is next Sunday in the Dome against Army. Last season, the Orange upset No.9 West Point in a triple overtime thriller at home. Another big game from Brad Voigt or Nate Solomon, the lead scorer from last year’s matchup, would help Syracuse win back-to-back years.