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Syracuse lacrosse put out one of its ugliest seasons in program history last season, ending with a 4-10 record. It was a year full of forgettable losses, none uglier than its 14-12 loss at UAlbany in the midst of a six-game freefall at the end of the season. Friday night was an opportunity to show last year was a fluke and start 2-0 for the first time since 2020.

Last year Syracuse didn’t have Griffin Cook or Tyler Cordes, but tonight, the Orange were healthy, catching the Great Danes at the beginning of the season. At home, SU put on an offensive masterpiece, with contributions from 10 different players.

Led by Joey Spallina’s five goals, the Orange (2-0) blanked UAlbany (0-1), vindicating last year’s loss and showed that this young group of attackers can generate a litany of goals. Will Mark stood tall in net once again, swiftly saving 14 shots, and Jackson Birtwistle added in three goals.

Here are some observations from the win:

Welcome to Syracuse Joey Spallina

The golden child of Syracuse lacrosse has arrived. His first performance of the season against Vermont saw more missed shots and would-be opportunities slip away. But, against UAlbany, Spallina’s aggressiveness galvanized Syracuse’s best offensive performance since its 2022 season opening win over Holy Cross. He led all 10 Syracuse scorers with five goals, securing a hat trick midway through the second quarter.

It began with a simple screen on the left side, opening up considerable space for Spallina as he flew around the net from the X. He had great position on his defender and fired a low shot, burying it in the left corner of the goal to give the Orange a 4-1 advantage. Spallina showed off his nifty play, frequently gaining position around UAlbany defenders through devastating juke moves and tantalizing stick movements. Just a few minutes after his first goal, Spallina received a pass in at the X, sprinted around the left side of the crease and juked out his defender. He had complete daylight in front of him and bounced in another goal, increasing the Orange’s lead to 5-1.

He showcased his speed, the No. 1 overall recruit’s impressive ability to outrun everyone on the field. Beginning from the X or simply flying past people on the outside. To get Syracuse up to a six-goal lead in the third quarter, Spallina ran up from the X and bolted toward the front of the crease. Cook stood outside to the left and waited for the window to open Spallina’s stick to open. When it did, Cook connected with Spallina, and in one motion, the attacker caught the feed in, took another step to outrun his defender, spun around and buried his fourth shot.

Will Mark brick wall

The former Long Island goalie began his Syracuse career with a 13-save performance, holding Vermont to a measly five goals, the Orange’s fewest allowed since 2022’s season opener. It earned him ACC Defensive Player of the Week honors. But he had to face a UAlbany team that was returning six of its seven top scorers from last season, including Graydon Hogg, who led the Great Danes last year with 26 goals and 38 points. Syracuse’s defense broke down a few times, like it did early in the second quarter when Thomas Decker sped down the right hash mark on the field and drew all of its attention on the attack and away from Silas Richmond.

Mark also had trouble defending the right side of the goal throughout the game, letting up the majority of goals past his left side. When the Great Danes quickly notched two goals in less than a minute, moving the score to 6-3 Syracuse, Mark struggled to readjust and left the same side of the net open, allowing goals from Richmond and Alex Pfeiffer. Most of his saves, however, fell harmlessly into his stick’s webbing, and Mark gradually trekked further and further out of the crease as the game progressed to help defensive breakdowns.

UAlbany tended to send an additional man to the X and set a screen on whomever was defending the attack at the head of the play formation. Mark turned around in the middle of the goal and swayed back and forth as whatever Great Dane attack was trying to work around Syracuse’s defense. Early in the second quarter, Hogg escaped to the left side and had space for a shot on goal. Mark was standing straight up when a high shot near his shoulder came firing in. He stood still, twitched and brushed off the shot.

Let there be offense

Syracuse ended the first quarter against Vermont with zero goals and, catalyzed by a four-goal third quarter, ultimately outlasted the Catamounts in a sloppy, 7-5 game. The Orange were inaccurate, registering well-defended or hardly open shots on goal. The offense, led by Spallina and his 15 shots on goal struggled to find any success. After a week off, they had little trouble breaking through the UAlbany defense, quickly getting out to a 5-1 lead by the end of the first quarter. Within 35 seconds, after Birtwistle curled around the middle of the Great Dane’s defense and received a feed in from Owen Hiltz, Syracuse was on the board.

After nine first-half goals and with 3:30 left in the second quarter, the UAlbany head coach had seen enough from Tommy Heller and replaced him with Jack VanValkenburgh. The final straw was a one-step shot that Hiltz flung along the turf that found the back of the net to give Syracuse a 9-3 advantage. Heller was too slow to spin his stick around, and the ball whizzed in between his legs to give Hiltz his first goal of the day.

It took 12 minutes for Syracuse to score a goal against Vermont. It took 20 minutes against UAlbany to match the seven goals Syracuse scored last week. It started just 35 seconds after Johnny Richiusa won the opening faceoff and ended with the most goals Syracuse had scored since last year’s 18-16 win over Hobart, leaving UAlbany puzzled, the fans and sideline silent.

Jackson Birtwistle chips in hat trick

Birtwistle kicked off the scoring for SU, and continued to be a massive contributor to the offense, proving to be a spectacular close-range attacker for the Orange throughout the win. He ended last year with the third-most goals on the team, and could easily pace Spallina this season as the Orange’s top goal scorer. Working in from the outside, Birtwistle’s three goals came from within six yards of the crease.

He was accurate, too. Opposed to his four missed shots on goal last week against Vermont, Birtwistle found the net every time he fired at it. Within four minutes, Birtwistle had two goals. With 11:20 left in the first half, Birtwistle worked off of a screen set by Alex Simmons. He broke to his right and crouched down a bit in an attempt to get around Pfeiffer, who continued try and knock him over. Once he gained position, he leaned to his right and fired a quick shot past the goaltender for the goal.

Published on February 10, 2023 at 8:29 pm

Contact Anthony: aalandt@syr.edu | @anthonyalandt