Orange Takes On Louisville in ACC Match
The No. 2 Orange travels to Louisville, Ky. to take on the Louisville Cardinals
SYRACUSE, N.Y. -- The No. 2 Orange (12-1-0, 4-1-0) travel to Louisville Ky. to take on the Louisville Cardinals (6-5-1, 3-2-0) in an ACC showdown on Friday, Oct. 17 at 7:30 p.m. The Orange can set a new SU record for consecutive wins with a victory.
Live stats and video will be available for the match on GoCards.com.
DEFENSE CONTRIBUTING OFFENSE
Orange backs have combined to score eight goals this season.
Tyler Hilliard (3),
Skylar Thomas (2)
Jordan Murrell (2) and
Louis Cross (1) have all scored in 2014. The eight goals from the back line is one less than the total number of goals scored by SU defenders from 2011-13 (9). The Orange has benefited from four goals in the past two matches being scored by defenders, including three from Hilliard.
LEADING FROM THE FRONT
Syracuse has trailed for only 15:56 out of a possible 1,186:36 this season. The only time SU has been behind was when Notre Dame scored to take a 1-0 advantage on Sept. 13 in the 75th minute, a lead it held until the end of the match.
SIZZLING START
At 12-1-0, the 2014 squad owns the best 13-game start to a season in program history. No previous Syracuse team has ever won 12 of its first 13 matches.
ORANGE EARNS HIGHEST RANKING IN PROGRAM HISTORY
Syracuse received five first-place votes and is
No. 2 in the most recent NSCAA poll, released on Oct. 14. The ranking is two spots better than the highest previous ranking in program history (No. 4), which the team achieved last week Before 2014, the Orange's highest previous ranking was sixth back in 1984. Washington is No. 1 for the second week in a row. The Huskies totaled 13 first-place votes and 466 points to edge out the Orange (452 points).
LAST TIME OUT
The Orange scored three times in the first 14 minutes of the second half and cruised to a 4-0 win at Connecticut on Oct. 14. Four different players tallied second-half goals, including
Tyler Hilliard who finished with a game-high three points (1 goal, 1 assist).
Noah Rhynhart scored his first goal of the year in the 82nd minute to close the scoring. The SU defense did not allow a shot on goal as it recorded its 10th clean sheet of the season.
THE LOUISVILLE SERIES
Syracuse hasn't beaten Louisville since 2008 and the Cardinals own a 5-2-1 lead in the overall series. Both Orange wins against the Cardinals have been in overtime (2-1 in 2005 and 3-2 in 2008). Louisville won the most recent matchup, 2-1, in 2012 at the SU Soccer Stadium.
SCOUTING THE CARDINALS
It's been the tale of two seasons for Louisville, which opened the year 5-1-1 before losing four in a row from Sept. 30 to Oct. 10. The Cardinals are now 6-5-1 overall and 3-2-0 in conference play. Ben Strong leads the Cardinals in both goals (5) and points (13) and tallied the opening goal in Louisville's 2-1 victory against Florida Gulf Coast Tuesday. Ricardo Velazco and Tim Kubel are second on the club with four goals apiece and Will Vitalis has a team-best four assists. Joachim Ball has played the majority of minutes in goal. He has 37 saves and owns a 1.06 goals-against average with three shutouts. Ken Lolla is in his ninth year at the helm of the Cardinals. He owns a 105-52-24 record at Louisville and guided the team to its first NCAA College Cup appearance in 2010. Prior to taking over the Cardinals, Lolla was the head coach at Akron from 1993 to 2005.
Up Next...
The Orange returns home on Tuesday, Oct. 21 to take on Bucknell at the SU Soccer Stadium at 7 p.m. The Bison are 6-7-0 thus far on the season.
