by SYRACUSE, N.Y. – Attackmen Dylan Donahue and Randy Staats (Six Nations) each had six points to lead No. 2 Syracuse (3-0) to a 12-9 win against No. 11 Army (3-1) Sunday, Feb. 22 at the Carrier Dome.
Donahue tallied a game-high five goals on 10 shots. He also assisted on a Nicky Galasso goal in the third quarter. Staats had two goals and matched his career high with four assists, including a pair feeds to Donahue that resulted in goals.
“We had to work hard for all our shots. Thank goodness Dylan was shooting so well tonight. That really helped our cause,” head coach John Desko said. “To win against a good Army team, I think this game is going to make us a better lacrosse team.”
In addition to the big nights by Donahue and Staats, the Orange received another superb effort from Ben Williamsat the faceoff X. Williams won 21-of-25 (.840) draws, including all 11 first-half faceoffs, and picked up a career-best 13 ground balls.
Staats had a hand in three of the Orange’s four first-quarter goals. He scored once and recorded two assists, including a dazzling behind-the-back pass to Donahue for a goal that gave Syracuse a 4-2 lead with 4.8 seconds left in the opening period.
In the second quarter, Army got goals from John Glesener and A.J. Canara 1:12 apart to even the game, 4-4, with 4:03 remaining in the half.
Donahue stopped the Army momentum with his third goal of game at the 2:55 mark to push the hosts in front, 5-4, at halftime.
The Black Knights scored the first two goals of the third quarter to gain a 6-5 edge, but the Orange ended the period on a 5-1 run to take a 10-7 margin into the final quarter.
Army closed the gap to two twice in the fourth period, the second time on a Cole Johnson finish of a Connor Cook pass with 3:47 to play in regulation. However, that proved to be the Black Knights’ final goal of the contest, and Kevin Rice secured the victory for Syracuse when he finished a feed from Staats with 1:05 remaining.
Goalie Bobby Wardwell led an Orange defense that held Army to nine goals, half its season average (18.67 per game) entering the contest. Wardwell played the entire game and made a season-high 11 saves.
Glesener paced the Army offense with four goals. Johnson finished with two. Goaltender Sam Somers registered 10 saves, including seven in the first half.
Syracuse owned a 35-30 advantage in shots for the game. The Orange also won the ground ball battle 39-19, thanks largely to Williams’ dominance at the faceoff X.
The Orange puts its perfect record on the line Sunday, March 1 when it opens ACC play against Virginia. Faceoff is scheduled for 12 p.m. inside the Carrier Dome. The game will be televised live nationally on ESPNU.
