#8 ‘Cuse Storms Past #13 Hoyas with Second-Quarter Surge

Sunday, March 22

Syracuse, N.Y.

1 p.m.

Syracuse University

8-2

Georgetown

3-4

Georgetown

Syracuse

#8 ‘Cuse Storms Past #13 Hoyas with Second-Quarter Surge

3/22/2026 3:28:00 PM | Men's Lacrosse

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Orange Returned to Dome for First Time in 37 Days

SYRACUSE, N.Y. – Michael Leo tied a career high with five goals as No. 8 Syracuse University men's lacrosse used a huge offensive surge to get past No. 13 Georgetown 18-12 Sunday afternoon at the JMA Wireless Dome.

The win marked the first regular-season meeting between the former Big East rivals since 2013, and No. 8 Syracuse (8-2) made it count after a grueling six-game road stretch and picking up its fifth-consecutive win. The Orange surged in the second quarter with a seven-goal run. Leo led all scorers with five goals, Finn Thomson finished with three goals and an assist, and Jimmy McCool made 17 saves to earn the victory. John Mullen dominated the faceoff circle, winning 18 of 32 draws and picking up 10 ground balls to fuel the Orange's offensive output.

Georgetown (3-4) was led by the Connor brothers; Rory Connor finished with two goals and two assists and Liam Connor tallied two goals and five assists. The Hoyas proved dangerous in spurts, outscoring Syracuse 4-0 in a stretch that briefly made the third quarter competitive, but the Orange withstood the challenge. Anderson Moore made 14 saves in goal for Georgetown.

How it Happened

Georgetown opened the scoring with goals from Jake Bickel and Joe Cesare in the first four minutes to grab an early 2-0 lead. The Orange answered with four of the next five goals to close the quarter, with Wyatt Hottle and Greg Elijah-Brown, the latter on the man-up, pulling Syracuse even before Thomson's unassisted goal off a forced turnover gave the Orange a 4-3 edge heading into the second.
Syracuse stormed past the Hoyas with a dominant second quarter, outscoring Georgetown 8-3 to push the lead to 12-6 at the break. The eight-goal frame featured goals from Payton Anderson, Joey Spallina (twice), Thomson, Leo (twice), and Charlie Kraftson. That stretch forced a Georgetown timeout with three minutes to play in the half. The Hoyas responded with back-to-back goals from Rory Connor and Hayden Cody in the final two minutes, but could not slow the 'Cuse momentum heading into halftime.
Georgetown rallied in the third quarter with a 4-0 run of its own, a stretch bookended by goals from Jack Ransom, including a man-up conversion, and Liam Connor and Rory Connors, trimming the deficit to 15-10. The Orange responded by closing the period with back-to-back goals from Luke Rhoa on the man-up and Hottle, both assisted by Spallina, to send 'Cuse to the fourth with a 17-10 cushion.
In a penalty-plagued fourth quarter, Georgetown converted two man-up opportunities to pull within 17-12, but Leo supplied the exclamation point, scoring man-down with two minutes remaining to seal the 18-12 final.

Behind the Numbers

Leo's five-goal effort tied his best single-game output of his Syracuse career. He now has 20 goals on the season.
Spallina finished with two goals and four assists for six points on the afternoon. He now has 21 goals and 27 assists on the year, bringing his career total to 294, just 13 behind Mike Powell's program record of 307.
Thomson reached 21 goals on the season with his hat trick, while Mullen's 16-of-28 performance at the X continued a strong stretch for the faceoff unit.
McCool's 17-save performance against a Georgetown offense averaging more than 12 goals per game was a key factor in the Orange's ability to maintain their lead during the Hoyas' third-quarter push.
Syracuse went 2-for-3 on the extra man, while limiting Georgetown to 2-for-6.
The Orange, playing at home for the first time since February 13, improved to 4-0 at the JMA Wireless Dome. It was also the sixth top-20 win in 10 games for the Orange this year.

Up Next for Syracuse

The Orange open ACC play next Saturday when No. 11 Duke visits the JMA Wireless Dome. Opening faceoff is set for 2 p.m. on ESPNU.
Tickets can be purchased at cuse.com/lacrosse-tickets
Next week's league opener features two teams that battled for the ACC crown last season in Charlotte, a 9-8 Orange win.