Burnt Orange: m. lax beats Syracuse to go 4-1

While most Hopkins students were enjoying a relaxing spring break free from the rigors of school, the men's lacrosse team was as busy as ever. Trying to build on wins against Princeton and the University of Maryland - Baltimore County, the team did just that, with victories over Hofstra and Syracuse. The team is currently 4-1 and ranked third in the nation.

On the road against Syracuse this past Saturday, the Blue Jays won in blow-out fashion, 17-9, in one of the few games this season in which the team dominated both sides of the ball for almost all of the game.

As has been often the case this season, the Blue Jays started off a bit slowly, giving up two early goals to put the team down, 2-1. Soon after, however, they went on an offensive splurge, scoring five more goals in the first quarter to give it a 6-2 lead. With three more goals in the first two minutes of the second quarter, the Blue Jays had scored eight straight goals, giving them a 9-2 lead.

The early and large lead against a historically tough Syracuse team was crucial, as only a week earlier, the Orange had scored 14 goals against then-second-ranked Georgetown, and the offense was able to create some breathing room with the seven-goal lead.

"Early on, our offense moved the ball extremely well and got a lot of open looks from good areas," co-captain senior midfielder Brendan Skakandi said. "They did a really good job of finishing their shots."

Those shots came from all directions and seemingly all players, as the eight goals were scored by eight different players.

Still, even with such a big lead, Syracuse was not about to give up. They went on a little streak of their own, scoring three of the next four goals. By halftime, the score was 11-5, and, even with a little bit of breathing room, the victory was anything but guaranteed.

But soon after the second half began, the Blue Jays ended any thoughts of a Syracuse comeback, scoring five straight goals. Junior midfielder Paul Rabil scored two of the five, his second and third goals of the game. Freshman attacker Steve Boyle, who is currently the team's leading scorer, netted a team-high four goals.

Hopkins' constant attacks were important in more ways than one, as it allowed the defense to rest and kept the ball away from senior goalie Jesse Schwartzman.

"Our offense also turned out to be our best defense because our offense controlled the ball very well," senior defender Eric Zerrlaut said.

Meanwhile, when the ball did get near the Blue Jays' goal, the Hopkins defenders stepped up and, for the most part, kept the ball out of the net. Facing 45 shots, Schwartzman made 17 saves, tying his season high. Although the nine goals were the most the team has given up all season, the defensive effort, led by Schwartzman, was still a critical factor in the victory.

"Jesse's performance in goal was a major boost for our defense," Skakandi said. "Anytime your goalie has 17 saves, your defense is going to have success."

"We scouted their tendencies, and we communicated well," Schwartzman added.

A week before their big win in upstate New York, Hopkins struggled at home against an unranked Hofstra squad but was able to come away with a tight 9-8 win. The game was marked by a series of highs and lows, as the Jays went from starting off with a 5-1 lead to being up by only one goal, 6-5, as the fourth quarter got underway. However, Hopkins never relinquished its small lead and managed to hold on for the win.

Though Hofstra might not have had a high ranking like Syracuse, it had one key advantage that helped make things as close as they were: Hofstra's head coach, Seth Tierney, was Hopkins' associate head coach just last year and was familiar with the team's players and style of play.

"We all wanted to play well because we were up against Coach Tierney," said Skakandi. "We felt that if anyone would know our team and our tendencies other than our coaches it would be him."

Still, even with the advantage of having Tierney on their side, Hofstra never managed to take the lead. Whereas the Syracuse win was about the offense, the tight Hofstra victory demonstrated the defense's ability to shut teams down when necessary.

"Against Hofstra, we proved that our defense can make a lot of stops when our offense has a rough day," Zerrlaut said.

Boyle had three goals in the game, while senior attacker Jake Byrne added two of his own, his fourth and fifth of the season.

Now four wins removed from its early season loss against Albany, the team has the momentum it needs, as it will be facing top-ranked opponents throughout the season. All but one of its eight remaining games will be played against schools ranked in the top 15, and the confidence gained from these past few games should give the team an extra boost.