ACC/Ivy Challenge Next for #7 Orange

No. 7 SYRACUSE (3-1) at No. 10 Princeton (1-1)
Game Details	Friday, February 27, 2026 \| Princeton, N.J. \| 4 p.m. ET
Game Coverage	Live Coverage: Stats Stream: ESPN+ Listen: Cuse.com \| TK99/105 \| Learfield IMG College \| Cuse App \| Varsity App \| TuneIn \| WAER Twitter: @CuseMLAX Instagram: @CuseMLAX Facebook: CuseMLAX
Syracuse Links	News \| Roster \| Schedule \| Game Notes
Princeton Links	News \| Roster \| Schedule \| Game Notes

THE GAME
- The road trip continues this weekend with a double dip on tap as the Orange head for the ACC/Ivy Challenge this weekend. Joining No. 7/No. 6 Syracuse on the ACC side of things will be No. 2/No.1 North Carolina, while No. 10/No. 7 Princeton and No. 19/No. 19 Penn represent the Ivy League.
- Syracuse and Princeton square off at 4 p.m. on Friday in New Jersey, while UNC and Penn clash at 5 p.m. in Philadelphia. On Sunday, the ACC schools flip as the Orange take on Penn in Philadelphia at noon with the Heels meeting the Tigers, also at noon.
- Friday caps a three-game run of rematches from the 2025 NCAA Tournament: Maryland, Harvard, Princeton. Syracuse is 1-1 in the rematches this season.
- Friday will be the first time Syracuse and Princeton meet in the regular season since 2023, a 16-13 Orange victory at Class of 1952 Stadium. That game was a coming out party for the current senior class, then freshmen, as that group combined for nine goals and eight assists, bolstered by a four-goal, five-assist effort by Joey Spallina.
- Syracuse has won six straight against the Tigers, dating back to a 13-4 win at the 2010 Konica Minolta Big City Classic, one of the first events at New Meadowlands Stadium.
- The Orange are coming off a back-and-forth game of runs at No. 13 Harvard last weekend, a 13-12 setback that featured six ties and six lead changes. The Tigers are coming off a 13-12 win over No. 2 Maryland last weekend in College Park, one of four common opponents between Syracuse and Princeton this season.
- Friday's game will stream on ESPN+ Cody Crusciel and Alex Schoen on the call.
- Tim Leonard and Kyle Fetterly will have the radio call for the Syracuse Sports Network on TK99/105 this week. Fans can also catch radio broadcasts on Cuse.com, The Varsity App, and TuneIn App. Syracuse student-radio WAER will be on hand in Central New Jersey as well.

A WIN ON FRIDAY WOULD...
- Run Syarcuse's winning streak seven over the Tigers daring back to 2010 and improve the Orange to 12-2 all-time on the road against Princeton.
- Be the fourth win over an Ivy League team in Gary Gait's tenure at the head of the men's program. Syracuse is 3-5 against the Ivys, with six of those eight games coming as one goal finishes, including three overtimes.
- See Syracuse pick up its first true road win since beating Virginia 12-10 on March 29, 2025. (The Orange have played two true road games since then).
- Improve to 14-7 all-time against teams ranked 10th in the most recent USILA Coaches Poll.
- Be the first Orange win over a 10th-ranked foe since besting #10 Cornell at home by a 13-8 count in April 2019.
- Be the 965th win in program history, the second-most all-time among Division I programs.

HONORARY IVY LEAGUERS
- For two weeks in February, Syracuse could be considered associate members of the Ivy League as the Orange face three of the Ancient Eight all in a row and all on the road.
- Syracuse played three Ivy League teams last year, two of which were scheduled - Harvard and Cornell - with another two - Harvard again and Princeton - in the NCAA Tournament.
- The Orange went 2-2 against the Ivys last spring in the regular (0-2) and postseason (2-0).
- Syracuse has not played three Ivy League teams in one regular season since 2005 when the Orange went 2-1, beating No. 15 Princeton and No. 18 Brown but dropping a game against No. 8 Cornell.
- 'Cuse sits at 0-1 against the Ivys this season after a one-goal setback last weekend at No. 13 Harvard.
- Syracuse is one of six non-Ivy League teams to play at least three Ivy League teams this season: Boston University (3), Fairfield (3), UNC (4), Penn State (3), UAlbany (3). Syracuse is the only non-Ivy to play all of its games away from home. UNC plays two true road games and one neutral game.

THE GAUNTLET
- The 2026 Syracuse men's lacrosse schedule shied away from no one.
- Of the other 19 teams ranked in the USILA Division I Week Two Coaches Poll, Syracuse will face 13 of those teams during the regular season's 15 games: No. 1 Notre Dame, No. 2 North Carolina, No. 5 Duke, No. 6 Harvard, No. 10 Princeton, No. 11 Georgetown, No. 11 Maryland, No. 13 Virginia, No. 16 Johns Hopkins, No. 17 Denver, No. 18 Saint Joseph's No. 19 Penn, with Boston University receiving votes. The Orange are 2-1 against top 20 teams this year.
- This year's 15 opponents combined to go 142-94 last season, a 60.2 winning percentage, while each team on the calendar this season has made the NCAA Tournament at least once since 2022.
- Syracuse has one of the most difficult schedules in Division I this year. Syracuse, Maryland, and North Carolina will all face 10 teams ranked in the top 20 of the Inside Lacrosse Division I Preseason Media Poll, but the Orange have the toughest slate among those three. Syracuse's average for preseason ranked teams is 9.2 while North Carolina is second at 10.1 and Maryland checks in with a 10.6 average.

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Players Mentioned

Joey Spallina

Syracuse University Athletics