Powellfan
Renowned lacrosse analyst
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Syracuse's "progressive menu" schedule continues this weekend with their first road trip of the season. Syracuse hasn't found much success against the Terps in recent years, but they came within an overtime goal last year. Can they finally break through and take down the current standard bearers in Maryland?
I am having a hard time with this game if I am being honest. Maryland has played two games this year, giving up seven goals to both Richmond and Loyola. But against the more respected Spiders, they ran away for easy victory. Against the (seemingly) downtrodden Greyhounds it was a different story as the Terps escaped with a one goal victory in overtime. Last year Maryland looked broken upon entering the NCAA Tournament, but found a second wind and made an improbable run to the title game. This year's team looks a lot different to last year's with a bunch of transfers. After two very different performances to start the year, which version of the Terps show up on Saturday?
It will be interesting to see how Syracuse defends Maryland. Midfielder Matthew Keegan is their leading scorer with seven points on the year. Does SU employ the same strategy they employed against both Vermont and Towson and bump up Billy Dwan to cover him? After a rough outing against Loyola, I wonder a bit if MD will experiment with their lineups, similar to what they did last year. No matter what, I have to imagine Riley Figuerias will cover Braden Erksa. The Terp attacker had a big game last year against the Orange, but I have feeling Figuerias will be up to the task this year. Also Erksa seems to be struggling a bit this year, with more turnovers (six) than points (four). Loyola threw a zone at Maryland last week which seemed to stymie them into a long scoring drought. I doubt Syracuse goes full zone, but wouldn't be surprised if they threw one out every once in a while. Despite their struggles last week, Maryland has talent that will punish you if you're not careful. Syracuse needs to be very careful with it's slides.
On offense I am sure Spallina and co will be glad they don't have to face off against Ajax Zappatello. But old foe Logan McAnaney is back and is saving the ball at 65% this season. The Terps D has been tough this year, but they also haven't faced a team like Syracuse yet. Given the versatility of the SU offense it should be interesting to see how Maryland decides to match up. Rhoa and Leo had big games against the Terps last year, I imagine they will try and attack the UMD short sticks quite a big this time around. Hopefully we see the second midfield bounce back from a rough outing last week.
Face-offs are a real question. Maryland has been very good this season with a two person rotation trying to replace Luke Wierman. Shea Keethler and Sean Creter have combined to win 65% of their draws this year, with an almost even share. That said they haven't faced the toughest competition this year - Richmond won just 9-23 vs Robert Morris and Loyola won just 5-21 vs Georgetown. They'll face a big step up in John Mullen who has looked really strong this year. Curious how he faces against a true platoon unit.
Like I stated at the beginning of this, I really don't know what to expect. I think SU has a good chance to win, and if Maryland keeps turning the ball over like they did against Loyola (18) and they don't win the majority of the face-offs, dare I say I think the Orange could win by a couple. But if SU is sliding all over the place and giving Maryland easy shooting opportunities, that could make the game a lot closer. I also just don't know what adjustments MD will make after a disappointing performance vs Loyola. Their second midfield has not produced much in two games (no bench points vs the Greyhounds, three assists vs Richmond). Will SU be prepared if Erksa is running out the box? This feels like finally the year that SU should beat the Terps, but there's a long distance between should and did. Let's go SU!
I am having a hard time with this game if I am being honest. Maryland has played two games this year, giving up seven goals to both Richmond and Loyola. But against the more respected Spiders, they ran away for easy victory. Against the (seemingly) downtrodden Greyhounds it was a different story as the Terps escaped with a one goal victory in overtime. Last year Maryland looked broken upon entering the NCAA Tournament, but found a second wind and made an improbable run to the title game. This year's team looks a lot different to last year's with a bunch of transfers. After two very different performances to start the year, which version of the Terps show up on Saturday?
It will be interesting to see how Syracuse defends Maryland. Midfielder Matthew Keegan is their leading scorer with seven points on the year. Does SU employ the same strategy they employed against both Vermont and Towson and bump up Billy Dwan to cover him? After a rough outing against Loyola, I wonder a bit if MD will experiment with their lineups, similar to what they did last year. No matter what, I have to imagine Riley Figuerias will cover Braden Erksa. The Terp attacker had a big game last year against the Orange, but I have feeling Figuerias will be up to the task this year. Also Erksa seems to be struggling a bit this year, with more turnovers (six) than points (four). Loyola threw a zone at Maryland last week which seemed to stymie them into a long scoring drought. I doubt Syracuse goes full zone, but wouldn't be surprised if they threw one out every once in a while. Despite their struggles last week, Maryland has talent that will punish you if you're not careful. Syracuse needs to be very careful with it's slides.
On offense I am sure Spallina and co will be glad they don't have to face off against Ajax Zappatello. But old foe Logan McAnaney is back and is saving the ball at 65% this season. The Terps D has been tough this year, but they also haven't faced a team like Syracuse yet. Given the versatility of the SU offense it should be interesting to see how Maryland decides to match up. Rhoa and Leo had big games against the Terps last year, I imagine they will try and attack the UMD short sticks quite a big this time around. Hopefully we see the second midfield bounce back from a rough outing last week.
Face-offs are a real question. Maryland has been very good this season with a two person rotation trying to replace Luke Wierman. Shea Keethler and Sean Creter have combined to win 65% of their draws this year, with an almost even share. That said they haven't faced the toughest competition this year - Richmond won just 9-23 vs Robert Morris and Loyola won just 5-21 vs Georgetown. They'll face a big step up in John Mullen who has looked really strong this year. Curious how he faces against a true platoon unit.
Like I stated at the beginning of this, I really don't know what to expect. I think SU has a good chance to win, and if Maryland keeps turning the ball over like they did against Loyola (18) and they don't win the majority of the face-offs, dare I say I think the Orange could win by a couple. But if SU is sliding all over the place and giving Maryland easy shooting opportunities, that could make the game a lot closer. I also just don't know what adjustments MD will make after a disappointing performance vs Loyola. Their second midfield has not produced much in two games (no bench points vs the Greyhounds, three assists vs Richmond). Will SU be prepared if Erksa is running out the box? This feels like finally the year that SU should beat the Terps, but there's a long distance between should and did. Let's go SU!
