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Despite beginning its season 1-2 with losses to No. 1 Northwestern and then-No. 9 Maryland, Syracuse set the tone for another dominant campaign with a pivotal road conference win over No. 2 Notre Dame on Feb. 24. Though SU split its next two games versus Duke and then-No. 15 Stony Brook it embarked on a nine-game winning streak. Throughout that stretch, the Orange defeated six Atlantic Coast Conference teams, earning their first outright ACC regular season title.

While Syracuse was crowned the ACC’s best regular season team ahead of its final game, the Orange had one more game to prove itself as the best team in the conference. On Thursday, SU traveled to Chestnut Hill, Mass., to face Boston College — who won the last four matchups between the teams. Syracuse led 5-3 at halftime, but the Eagles quickly flipped the game in the second half to force overtime. In the extra period, BC’s Cassidy Weeks scored the game-winner.

The Orange’s loss dropped them from No. 2 in the Inside Lacrosse rankings to No. 4 — the third-best team in the ACC behind Notre Dame and Boston College. Now, SU’s focus turns to the ACC Tournament, where it looks to win its first Conference Tournament championship since 2015. In last year’s tournament, the No. 2 seeded Orange suffered a 15-9 loss to UNC in the semifinals.

Here’s Syracuse’s (12-4, 8-1 ACC) roadmap toward its second ACC Tournament championship in Charlotte, N.C. on April 28:

Quarterfinals (April 24)

After defeating No. 8 seed Virginia Tech 13-11 on Sunday, No. 9 seed Louisville (8-10, 3-7 ACC) faces Syracuse on Wednesday at 11 a.m. in the quarterfinals. The Cardinals traveled to the JMA Wireless Dome on March 30, losing 22-12.

The Orange only maintained a 9-7 lead at halftime, but backed by a strong performance on the draw control from Kate Mashewske and a dominant 13-5 second half, cruised to a double-digit win. Additionally, SU’s defense shut down Louisville’s Kokoro Nakazawa, who entered the game as the second-highest point scorer in the ACC.

In what should be a tune-up game, Syracuse is well-positioned to hand the Cardinals another loss.

One chapter closes. Another starts Wednesday. :tangerine::lacrosse: pic.twitter.com/fbNkVErvQw

— Syracuse Women's Lacrosse (@CuseWLAX) April 22, 2024

Semifinals (April 26)

If SU defeats Louisville, it will face either No. 4 seed North Carolina (10-5, 6-3 ACC) or No. 5 seed Virginia (13-3, 6-3 ACC) on Friday at 5 p.m. in the semifinals. On March 16, SU handed then-No. 9 UNC a 20-5 loss — the Tar Heels’ worst defeat in program history.

Syracuse head coach Kayla Treanor has preached throughout the season that she wants her team to play complete games; the Orange’s bludgeoning of North Carolina was their most prevalent showing of the season. Postgame, Treanor said it was “probably (her team’s) best game of the season.”

Though SU also defeated Virginia, it was much closer. Then-No. 9 UVA led most of the game and controlled a 14-12 lead in the fourth quarter. But Maddy Baxter — who scored a career-high five goals — scored two consecutive goals tying the game 14-14. Then, Emma Tyrrell scored the game-winner with five minutes remaining as the Orange’s defense stifled the Cavaliers to close out the win.

To end their seasons, both teams finished strong. After losing to Boston College on March 30, the Tar Heels ended their regular season on a three-game winning streak and are ranked No. 14 in the IL rankings. Meanwhile, Virginia ended on a four-game winning streak, which included an overtime win over BC on April 13. UVA’s win over the Eagles helped it jump to No. 6 in the IL rankings, where it ended the season.

Finals (April 28)

If Syracuse reaches its second consecutive ACC Tournament Final, it will likely face No. 2 seed Notre Dame (14-2, 7-2 ACC) or No. 3 seed Boston College (13-3, 7-2 ACC) at Noon on April 28.

It was a must-win game when the Orange traveled to South Bend in February. After starting the season 1-2, SU was at risk of being 1-3 and already matching its loss total from 2023. Throughout the first half, SU was down, but propelled by Olivia Adamson and Natalie Smith, SU’s two most-improved offensive players. The Orange fought back in the second half, outscoring the Fighting Irish 10-4 to win 16-14.

After it lost to Syracuse on Feb. 24 to kick off ACC play, Notre Dame was nearly flawless against the rest of its conference foes. While it fell to Virginia two games later, ND closed the season on a nine-game winning streak, including six conference wins. The Fighting Irish’s most pivotal win came against Boston College, notching a 15-14 road win on March 16.

Looking to finish its season on a 10-game winning streak, SU fell to BC for the fifth straight time. The Eagles’ winning streak began in the 2021 National Championship and included a 2022 regular season win before snapping Syracuse’s perfect 2023 regular and defeating it in the NCAA Final Four.

While the Orange had a chance to make a statement on March 18, they suffered their third-straight one-goal loss to BC. Should the teams meet again in the ACC Tournament, SU’s offense needs a better game plan for Boston College’s player-to-player defense. The Orange’s 10 goals versus BC was their second-lowest mark of the season and Tewarton nominee Tyrrell was contained to just one score. SU’s new-look offense has proved to be one of the best in the country, but it will need to be at its best to get over the hump against Boston College.

After losing to ND, Boston College — the defending ACC Tournament Champions — looked superb. Despite losing to Virginia in overtime on April 13, the Eagles closed their season 5-1, which included three wins over ranked teams. Now, Boston College is the No. 3 team in the IL rankings while Notre Dame is No. 2.

On the off chance that neither of the two powerhouses makes it to the Final, SU would face either No. 6 seed Duke or No. 7 seed Clemson. The Orange defeated the Blue Devils 15-8 on March 2 and the Tigers 15-6 on April 13.

Published on April 22, 2024 at 10:45 pm

Contact Justin: justingirshon@gmail.com | @JustinGirshon