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Kate Mashewske went into Syracuse’s matchup against Notre Dame leading the nation in draw controls per game with 10.5. She had recently become the second player in SU history to eclipse 300 career draw controls. The Tewaaraton watch list member had tallied six draw controls to help the Orange take a 12-7 lead at the beginning of the final period.

But shortly after the ensuing draw control, Mashewske fell awkwardly on the turf as she ran, grabbing her right leg. Just a few minutes later, Mashewske returned to the sideline on crutches to watch the rest of the game. The day after, she announced on Instagram that her season was over.

Syracuse has attempted to replace Mashewske ever since she went down four weeks ago. Of SU’s 110 draw controls in the first seven games, Mashewske had 70. Only four other players had collected multiple draws before the Notre Dame game. Since then, the Orange have given a variety of different players the opportunity to take the draw. Some of them had never done it before in college.

Before Mashewske’s injury, the Orange averaged 15.86 draw controls per game. In the six games after her injury, the team hasn’t faltered much, winning 15.33 draws per game.

Head coach Kayla Treanor said winning the draw control would be a vital piece going forward, and doing so consistently without Mashewske would be a process.

“It just allows us to have possession,” Treanor said. “If you have somebody that can win draw controls, it allows your offense to have big production and have those 20 plus (goal) games.”

Other than Mashewske and Katie Goodale, no other player had won more than six draws before facing Notre Dame. Sophomore Olivia Adamson won her first career draw in the final quarter against the Fighting Irish. She went 1-for-3 filling in for Mashewske.

The coaching staff decided Adamson would start taking a large chunk of the draws going forward, Treanor said. Sierra Cockerille hadn’t taken a draw all season, but she, along with Goodale and Maddy Baxter, took over the draw for SU.

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After the ND win, Syracuse played then-No. 9 Loyola, which wins the fourth-most draws per game in the country. Syracuse struggled on the draw against the Greyhounds during a 9-7 win. The Orange only won 5-of-19 draw controls, which is their fewest since recording 11 in the season-opener versus Northwestern.

Then, the Orange traveled to Duke three days later. The Blue Devils were ranked third in the NCAA in draw controls per game. Syracuse won 16-10, controlling 41% of the draws. And this time around, Adamson and Cockerille each secured two draw controls.

Syracuse flipped the script when it hosted Stony Brook four days later. SU won 68% of draws against the Seawolves. After Adamson won just five draws the previous three games, her and Cockerille both earned career-highs with 12 and four draw controls, respectively. The team built off this momentum in its next game against Louisville, winning 15-of-24 draws.

But during a 19-13 win over Cornell, the Orange couldn’t replicate the success they had against Stony Brook and Louisville. Although they did end up winning one more draw than the Big Red, Treanor knows the team can do better.

“I don’t think we did great on the draw tonight. I thought that was an area we struggled in,” Treanor said. “We were tested tonight and there’s a lot to learn from. That’s just what we have to do: learn from it and move forward.”

The Orange bounced back against Virginia, controlling 66% of the draws en route to a 21-9 blowout win. Adamson recorded six controls, while Goodale and Emma combined for 12.

Despite not taking the draw at Syracuse until this season, Adamson has now emerged as the team’s primary draw specialist, posting six or more draw controls in half the games since Mashewske went down. The team as a whole has only fallen from fifth to sixth in the Atlantic Coast Conference in draw controls per game during that time.

Overall, SU has won more draws than its opponent in four of the six games without Mashewske. The only games it lost the draw were against Duke and Loyola, two of the best draw-control units in the country.

“It’s just a newer unit in there working on developing chemistry,” Treanor said. “We’re just trying to get them a little better every game.”

Published on April 6, 2023 at 1:09 am

Contact Matthew: mahassan@syr.edu