Hiltz Scores In OT To Complete Six-Goal Comeback In NCAA First Round

Sunday, May 11

Syracuse, N.Y.

5 p.m.

Syracuse University

12-5

Harvard

10-5

Harvard

Syracuse

Hiltz Scores In OT To Complete Six-Goal Comeback In NCAA First Round

5/11/2025 7:35:00 PM | Men's Lacrosse

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SYRACUSE, N.Y. – Owen Hiltz scored the game-winning goal in overtime for the No. 5 Syracuse University men's lacrosse team Sunday as the Orange came from six goals down to upend No. 12 Harvard, 13-12, in the first round of the NCAA Tournament at the JMA Wireless Dome.

The Orange trailed 8-2 at halftime and by as many as five early in the fourth quarter, but outscored Harvard 7-3 in the final frame to force overtime. Hiltz then converted on the first possession of the extra period on a feed from Joey Spallina to complete the Syracuse comeback bid.

Syracuse (12-5) led by four goals from Luke Rhoa, which matched his career-high tally. Trey Deere notched a pair of goals with eight other Syracuse players tallying one. Hiltz (1g, 2a) and Spallina (1g, 2a) both had three points to trail just Rhoa for the team lead. Joining those four Orange players with multi-point efforts were Michael Leo (1g, 1a) and Finn Thomson (0g, 2a). John Mullen went 24-of-28 in the faceoff circle while Jimmy McCool made five saves in goal for the Orange.

Harvard (10-5) was led by three goals from Jack Speidell with Sam King, Teddy Malone and Logan Ip all adding two goals. Goalie Graham Stevens made 11 saves for the Crimson.

The victory avenges Syracuse's February loss to Harvard in the Dome. With the win, Syracuse moves on to the NCAA quarterfinals for the second consecutive season.

How It Happened

The Crimson scored the first three goals of the contest while Harvard's goalie Graham Stevens turned away Syracuse's first three shots on goal. With 3:34 remaining in the first quarter, Rhoa broke the ice for the Orange with his 23^rd goal of the campaign, cutting Syracuse's deficit to 3-1 at the end of the frame.
Harvard started the second quarter with four unanswered goals to take a 7-1 lead at the 7:06 mark. Rhoa halted the Crimson's scoring run with his second tally of the contest with 5:15 left in the period. However, after winning the ensuing faceoff, Harvard responded with a goal of its own to establish an 8-2 halftime advantage.
Syracuse was the first to score in the third quarter, with Payton Anderson delivering his 12^th goal of the season at the 6:48 mark. Just 10 seconds later, Nick Caccamo netted his first career goal on a pass from Thomson to make it an 8-4 game. Following Harvard's first tally of the second half, Spallina registered his first goal of the night to bring the Orange back to within four, 9-5, entering the fourth.
The teams traded goals in the opening three minutes of the fourth quarter, with Harvard striking first before Sam English answered with his first of the night. The Crimson came back with a goal of their own before the Orange answered with five straight in a 1:39 span to tie the game at 11. Rhoa completed a hat trick with 10:28 remaining to start the run with Deere adding another just 28 seconds with the Orange a man-up. Just 11 seconds later, Chuck Kuczynski netted his first career goal before Deere brought the Orange within one with his second tally. Rhoa then scored his fourth of the contest at the 8:49 mark to punctuate the flurry and tie the score for the first time since it was 0-0.
The Orange secured their first lead of the contest when Leo scored a man-up goal with 3:32 remaining in regulation. However, after making a crucial defensive stand, Harvard tied the game with six seconds left in the fourth quarter on a goal by Owen Gaffney.
After Mullen won the opening faceoff in overtime, Hiltz buried the game-winning goal on a pass from Spallina to secure the win for the Orange.

Behind The Numbers

Rhoa's four goals matched his career high, which he had reached twice previously, including earlier this season against Towson.
Hiltz extended his school-record streak of consecutive games with at least one point to 62. He scored or assisted on three of Syracuse's final four goals.
Like Hiltz, Spallina scored all three of his points in the second half. It was his fifth straight game with multiple assists.
Deere turned in his first multi-goal game since March 22 when he netted four against Colgate at the Dome. It was his fifth multi-goal effort of the campaign.
The Orange bested Harvard 53-8 in the faceoff circle across their two meetings this season. Mullen went 24-of-28 in the circle Sunday after winning 28-of-31 attempts in the regular-season encounter.
Syracuse 45 shots compared to Harvard's 36, with the Orange winning the shots on goal battle 24-17. Syracuse put 10 shots on net in the fourth quarter compared to just three for the Crimson.
The Orange scooped 34 groundballs compared to just 25 for Harvard.
This was Syracuse's first overtime victory since March 24, 2019, when Brendan Curry (2018-22) scored to beat No. 2 Duke 9-8 at the Dome.
Syracuse improved to 31-4 in NCAA Tournament games in the Dome. The victory was the 70th for the Orange in the NCAA Tournament, as the program is now 70-30 in its 100 tournament games.
The Orange are now 2-0 all-time against the Crimson in the NCAA Tournament, with the first meeting also coming in the first round in 2006.
This was Syracuse's second one-goal victory of the campaign, with the other coming in the ACC championship game against Duke.
Syracuse has now won three games this season when trailing at halftime and is 3-3 on the campaign when entering the second half trailing.

Up Next
Syracuse will face No. 3 Princeton in the quarterfinals on Saturday, May 17 in Hempstead, N.Y. at Hofstra's James M. Shuart Stadium. Faceoff is set for 2:30 on ESPNU. Tickets can be purchased here: NCAA Quarterfinal Tickets