PHILADELPHIA — Matt Harris was a bearded human missile.

On faceoffs, he came crashing in from the wing, battering Denver’s tangled-up faceoff specialist Chase Carraro. And when Carraro or any other DU player escaped from the ground-ball scrap, Harris was there, seeking heat and delivering pain — especially in the clutch.

“Guys making huge plays from Matt Harris in the wing and those little checks that get us the ball in crunch time,” Syracuse midfielder JoJo Marasco said. “We tied it up and then we got the ball again. We won a faceoff, and that’s just incredible. These guys, when it’s time to step up, they do.”

Perhaps no one embodied that more than Harris.

If Steve Ianzito hadn’t floored Carraro with 2:24 left to play and SU trailing by one, Harris would have. The hit from Ianzito left Carraro unprotected in Harris’ path, but the ball popped loose and Harris instead shielded it out for Orange possession. It tied the game for the first time in 58 minutes.

Harris gobbled up four ground balls and forced three turnovers Saturday. The last turnover he caused was officially a penalty, but the Orange was hardly penalized. In fact, it sealed the win.

The long-stick midfielder closed off DU’s Eric Adamson with seven seconds left, forcing the attack to throw a pass behind the goal with five seconds remaining. He followed Adamson to the heart of the attacking zone, five yards out from goal. There, Harris choked off Denver’s last attack, holding Adamson helpless and forcing him to fling his stick uselessly toward the crease.

Said SU attack Derek Maltz: “ Matt Harris, in my opinion, is one of the most underrated players in the country, has had a heck of a tournament so far and just an unbelievable game.”

Published on May 26, 2013 at 12:15 am

Contact Jacob: jmklinge@syr.edu | @Jacob_Klinger_