Syracuse men's lacrosse braves the elements to defeat Hobart, retain Kraus-Simmons Trophy

No. 6 Syracuse men’s lacrosse (9-2, 1-0 Atlantic Coast Conference) headed down to frozen, windy Geneva, New York and took down Hobart (3-5, 0-0 Atlantic-10) 13-7 on Saturday. It’s the fifth victory in a row for the Orange, who haven’t lost to an opponent outside of Inside Lacrosse’s top ten all year.

The matchup renewed one of college lacrosse’s most storied rivalries. The Orange and Statesmen have met 106 times since 1916, with SU holding a decisive 81-26-2 edge. Hobart hasn’t claimed the Kraus-Simmons Trophy, awarded to the victor of the matchup, since 2013.

Perhaps exhilarated by the fire alarm that sounded just after the opening faceoff, the underdog Statesmen started hot. Attackman Chris Patterson opened the scoring with the first of a trio of goals for the freshman.

Hobart and Syracuse matched each other nearly goal-for-goal in the first half, with a late Michael Leo score giving SU a 4-3 halftime advantage.

“Cold’s definitely an equalizer,” Syracuse head coach Gary Gait observed after the game, “but we knew that. We knew we had to play a decent game to get through this.”

On the other side of the break, the Orange turned that spark into a 5-0 run that put the game away. Eight different players notched a goal in the six-point win.

Attackman Christian Mulé led the way with a hat trick for Syracuse, while attackmen Patterson and Anthony Dettellas each notched a trio of goals for Hobart.

One notable name that didn’t enter the box score for the ‘Cuse was attackman Owen Hiltz. He was an unexpected scratch with what coach Gait described as a “lower body issue”. Hiltz is reportedly day-to-day.

In his stead, a pair of lesser-known players stepped up to fill the void. The first was attackman Trey Deere, who took Hiltz’s spot in the starting lineup. The freshman came into the day without a collegiate goal to his name, but left with a pair of scores.

“Trey’s been awesome,” Mulé said after the game. “He stepped right in, and we really needed him today.”

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The second hero was possibly even less likely: close defender Billy Dwan, who doubled his season total with two pole goals. The scores helped the sophomore maintain the honor of having the highest shooting percentage on Syracuse; all four of Dwan’s attempts on the season have found twine.

Once again, however, the Orange won with their defense. The Statesmen are the third team in a row that SU has held under ten points - a feat that’s impressive enough without considering that the other two were both ranked at the time. Hobart managed just three goals in the second half to Syracuse’s nine as the Orange defenders finally acclimated to the cold and froze out the Statesmen attack.

Unranked Hobart is the last of its kind for SU during the regular season, as the four remaining opponents on Syracuse’s schedule are all ranked in Inside Lacrosse’s top 20. Highest among them is No. 2 Notre Dame (5-1, 0-0 ACC), against whom the Orange resume their ACC slate next Saturday. Opening faceoff is scheduled for 2 p.m., and WAER’s coverages begins with McClurg Remodeling Countdown to Faceoff at 1:30.