Orange Meet Blue Devils in ACC Championship

No. 12 SYRACUSE (10-5, 2-2 ACC) vs. No. 9 Duke (12-4, 2-2 ACC)
Game Details	Sunday, May 4, 2025 \| Charlotte, N.C. \| Noon ET
Game Coverage	Live Coverage: Stats Television: ACC Network Stream: ACC Network Listen: Cuse.com \| ESPN Radio Syracuse \| Learfield IMG College \| Cuse App \| Varsity App \| TuneIn \| WAER Twitter: @CuseMLAX Instagram: @CuseMLAX Facebook: CuseMLAX
Syracuse Links	News \| Roster \| Schedule \| Game Notes
Duke Links	News \| Roster \| Schedule \| Game Notes

THE GAME
- It's a return to the ACC Tournament Championship for the Orange after fourth-seeded Syracuse upended co-regular season champion and top-seeded Notre Dame Friday night.
- The Queen City converted to Upset City on Friday night as both the four seed, Syracuse, and the three seed, Duke, won their matchups.
- Sunday's title bout at noon from American Legion Memorial Stadium is a another rematch, and one Syracuse was looking forward to after falling 11-7 at Duke in mid-April.
- It was a full-team effort on Friday for Syracuse as 10 different players chipped in points, paced by a six-point night from Owen Hiltz (5g, 1a). Luke Rhoa (2g) and Greg Elijah-Brown (2g) added multiple goals as the Syracuse man-down unit held Notre Dame's man-up unit to just two goals on six chances, including killing off two 6-on-4 chances.
- Jimmy McCool, the ACC Goalie of the Year, was a wizard in net with a career-best 20 saves while John Mullen dominated at the X with 21 wins on 26 chances. Eight of Mullen's faceoff wins lead directly to Syracuse goals Friday. The pair stayed in rhythm all night, despite weathering a lightning delay of nearly an hour.
- Duke came out fast and furious against in-state rival North Carolina, jumping out to a 12-1 lead by the midway point of the third quarter.
- Sunday's championship game is slated for a noon start live on ACC Network.
- Syracuse is 1-1 in neutral site games this year after picking up Friday night's victory.
- Likewise, Duke is 1-1 in neutral-site games, dropping a 13-6 decision in Dallas against Denver.
- ACC Network will be on hand for Championship action. Anish Shroff '04 will handle play-by-play duties with Matt Ward as an analyst and Dana Boyle reporting from the sideline.
- Tim Leonard '20 (play-by-play) and Kyle Fetterly '09 (analyst) take to the airwaves on Syracuse Sports Network and TK99/105 locally, Cuse.com, The Varsity App, and TuneIn App, as well as Syracuse University student-radio station WAER.

THE DUKE SERIES
- Syracuse and Duke will meet for the 27th time on Sunday and for the second time this season. The Orange will look to avenge an 11-7 loss in mid-April at the Blue Devils' home field.
- The Orange are looking to snap a small two-game skid against the Blue Devils, but history may favor Syracuse as the Orange have bested Duke twice in ACC Championship games (2015, 2016). Syracuse's last ACC title came as the fourth-seeded team in the 2016 ACC Tournament when the Orange beat a third-seeded Duke team 14-8.
- Syracuse is 3-1 all-time against Duke in the ACC Tournament, with the lone blemish coming last spring in the ACC Semifinals.
- But the Orange will look to reverse a trend and pick up their first win over Duke in the state of North Carolina since March 24, 2018, aiming to halt a four-game slide in the Tar Heel State against the Blue Devils.
- Syracuse leads the all-time series with a 15-11 record since the teams first met all the back in 1938.

A WIN ON SUNDAY WOULD...
- Be Syracuse's third ACC Men's Lacrosse Championship crown and the first since beating Duke 14-8 in Kennesaw, Georgia during the 2016 edition.
- Snap a two-game skid against the Blue Devils and end a four-game slide in the state of North Carolina against Duke.
- Improve Syracuse to 4-1 as the four seed in the ACC Tournament.
- Be Syracuse's second ACC Tournament win in the state of North Carolina since joining the league in 2014 (1-3).
- Split the season between Syracuse and Duke after the Blue Devils topped the Orange 11-7 in Durham.
- Log the 11th win of the season for Syracuse, marking back-to-back seasons with at least 11 wins for the first time since winning at least 10 from 2013-2017.
- Mark the seventh win over a top 20 team this season, surpassing last season's total including the postseason.
- Be the 959th win in program history, second-most among Division I programs.

CHALLENGING CHAMPIONS
- Since the first NCAA championship in 1971, Syracuse is now 20-15 when facing the defending national champions the following season after Friday's win over two-time defending national champion Notre Dame.
- Prior to regular season game against Notre Dame, the Orange had lost their last five contests against reigning champions after winning four straight from 2014-17.
- Three of these contests have come in the national championship game, with Syracuse winning the 2002 and 2008 national championships against Princeton and Johns Hopkins.
- Four contests have gone into overtime, with 'Cuse holding a 3-1 record. The last battle to go to overtime was a 12-11 victory against North Carolina in 2017.

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Players Mentioned

Greg Elijah-Brown

Owen Hiltz

Jimmy McCool

John Mullen

Luke Rhoa

Syracuse University Athletics