#7/#6 Syracuse Loses Close Home Battle to #15 Harvard

Saturday, February 22

Syracuse, N.Y.

1 p.m.

Syracuse University

3-2

Harvard

2-1

Harvard

Syracuse

#7/#6 Syracuse Loses Close Home Battle to #15 Harvard

2/22/2025 3:51:00 PM | Men's Lacrosse

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SYRACUSE, N.Y. – No. 7/No. 6 Syracuse University men's lacrosse was held to just four goals in the second half, dropping its first home game of the season, 14-15, to No. 15 Harvard University Saturday afternoon inside the JMA Wireless Dome.

Finn Thomson led the Orange (3-2) in scoring with a career-best five goals along with two ground balls and a caused turnover. Owen Hiltz added a season-high four goals with two assists, while Sam English (3), Michael Leo (1), and Joey Spallina (1) all tallied a goal. John Mullen won 28 of his 31 attempts at the faceoff X, setting new career-highs in both faceoffs won and attempted. Mullen grabbed a career-best 18 ground balls in the contest, both are program records for a sophomore and both the second-most for a single game at Syracuse.

Teddy Malone paced the Crimson (2-1) with four goals, while seven other Harvard players scored in the contest. Freshman goalkeeper Graham Stevens recorded 13 saves on 27 shots on goal from the Orange.

How It Happened

Syracuse got the game rolling with a 5-0 start over the first 5 minutes and 49 seconds. Hiltz score the first two for the Orange, before Thomson and English got in on the fun. English scored his two goals within 35 seconds of each other to cap off the 5-0 Orange scoring run.
Harvard responded with a 3-0 run of its own, before letting up a final Thomson goal to give 'Cuse the 6-3 advantage entering the second frame of action.
Another nine goals were scored between the two teams in the second quarter, kicked off by a Harvard score from Jack Speidell 1:12 into the frame. The Orange and Crimson traded goals throughout the quarter, before a Harvard goal with 0:48 left before halftime cut the Orange lead to 10-8 entering the break.
The Crimson held Syracuse to just two goals in the third frame, while scoring four of their own to tie the game at 12 a piece entering the final 15 minutes of action.
Harvard got on the board twice in the fourth quarter before Syracuse found the back of the net thanks to English with 10:52 remaining. Harvard responded almost two minutes later to hold a 15-13 lead with a little over nine minutes to play.
A two-minute, full-time-served penalty against Harvard with 2:28 remaining would give Syracuse numbers, as Owen Hiltz quickly capitalized to put the Orange within one with 1:54 to go in the game. Harvard held on in a pressure-filled final seconds to hand Syracuse their first home loss of the season, 15-14.

Behind the Numbers

Syracuse out-shot Harvard 50-40, 31 of which came in the first half.
The Orange dominated when picking up ground balls, grabbing 40 in contrast to the Crimson's 24.
Both teams were even on turnovers with 15 each in the contest. However, 11 of Syracuse's came in the second half, seven of them in the third frame of action.
Syracuse was a perfect 2-of-2 on extra-man opportunities, while Harvard was 2-of-3 in the same category.

Up Next for Syracuse

The Orange hit the road next Saturday, March 1, to take on Utah in Salt Lake City, Utah. Game time is set for 2 p.m. ET with live coverage on ESPN+.
Tickets for all remaining home games are available at Cuse.com/tickets and by calling the JMA Wireless Dome Box Office at 1-888-DOME-TIX (1-888-366-3849).