ACC Play Opens for No. 7 'Cuse

No. 7 SYRACUSE (8-2, 0-0) vs. No. 4 Duke (8-0, 0-0)
Game Details	Saturday, March 28, 2026 \| Syracuse, N.Y. \| 2 p.m. ET
Game Coverage	Live Coverage: Stats Television: ESPNU Stream: ESPNU 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
Duke Links	News \| Roster \| Schedule \| Game Notes

THE GAME
- It's league play for the Orange as No. 7/No. 5 Syracuse open ACC action with No. 4/No. 6 Duke this weekend at the JMA Wireless Dome.
- The two foes are familiar with one another as the last ACC teams each faced were each other. It's a rematch of the 2025 ACC Men's Lacrosse Championship game from last spring, which the Orange won in a 9-8 thriller in Charlotte.
- The Orange look to stay red hot as they ride a five-game winning streak into conference action. But the Blue Devils come to Central New York with an eight-game winning streak in had as well, opening the 2026 season at 8-0.
- Syracuse moved up in both polls this week, sliding up one spot in the USILA Coaches Poll to number seven while jumping three spots to number five in the Inside Lacrosse Media Poll.
- Duke also show movement in the polls, elevating two spots in the Coaches Poll to number four and holding steady at number six in the Media Poll.
- Syracuse holds a 16-11 edge in the all-time series after the teams split last year's games. Duke won the regular season showdown 11-7 at Koskinen, but the Orange got their revenge 9-8 in the league title game.
- Homefield has been friendly to Syracuse in the series as the Orange are 6-1 in Syracuse against Duke, with the lone blemish a 14-13 overtime thriller in 2023. Syracuse head coach Gary Gait is 2-1 at home against the Blue Devils since taking over on the men's side of the lacrosse programs.
- Syracuse won its sixth top-20 game of the year last week with an offensive outburst and an 18-12 win over No. 13 Georgetown at the Dome.
- Likewise, Duke picked up an 8-7 win over No. 14 Denver last week at Koskinen Stadium. The teams share three nonconference opponents this season: Saint Joseph's, Air Force, and Denver. Both teams went 3-0 against those opponents.
- Saturday's showdown is slated for a 2 p.m. start on ESPNU. It's a doubleheader day at the Dome as the eighth-ranked Syracuse women's team hosts No. 23 Pittsburgh at 10 a.m. on Saturday.
- Cam Manna and Quint Kessenich will have the call for ESPNU on Saturday at the men's game. The game will also air on the Syracuse Sports Network with Tim Leonard and Kyle Fetterly on the call for TK99/105 in Syracuse, through Cuse.com, The Varsity App, and the TuneIn app.
- Syracuse student-radio station WAER will be on hand as well for the game.

Another ACC DPOTW Honor
- For a second time this season, Syracuse University senior defenseman Riley Figueiras has been named ACC Men's Lacrosse Co-Defensive Player of the Week on March 24.
- Figueiras was also named ACC Defensive Player of the Week on February 17, marking this week's honor as the second of his Syracuse career.
- The Sunderland, Marylander backed Syracuse to a pair of top-15 wins this week as the Orange bested then-No. 14 Denver 13-12 on the road before dispatching 14th-ranked Georgetown 18-12 on Sunday at the JMA Wireless Dome.
- Figueiras finished the two-game week with three caused turnovers and seven ground balls. Tasked with marking some of the best scorers in the country, Figueiras limited opponent scoring chances, including holding Rory Connor to just two goals, the first time this season the Georgetown attackman did not score a hat trick.

SECOND TEWAARATON WATCH LIST ADDITION
- Senior netminder Jimmy McCool was added to the vaunted Tewaaraton Award Watch List this week as the Tewaaraton Foundation made its second round of additions to its potential winners.
- McCool has the ninth-best save percentage in Division I this season, sitting at .570, which also leads the ACC.
- His 12.20 saves per game also lead the conference and are 20th in the country while he enters the weekend with a 9.43 goals against average.
- The Boston, Massachusetts product has nine games this season with double digit saves and eight with a save percentage over 50 percent, including four games over 60 percent.

A WIN ON SUNDAY WOULD...
- See the Orange extend their winning streak to six straight after topping No. 19 Penn, No. 11 Johns Hopkins Air Force, #14 Denver, and #13 Georgetown. It would tie the longest run of wins since six straight in the heart of 2025 season.
- Improve Syracuse to 17-11 all-time against Duke and 7-1 when playing in the Salt City.
- Bump Syracuse's home record to 5-0 on the season.
- Mark the seventh top-20 win this year for the Orange (#16 Boston University, #1 Maryland, #19 Penn, #11 Hopkins, #14 Denver, #13 Georgetown). Syracuse won eight top 20 games all of last spring
- Be the 970th win in program history, the second-most all-time among Division I programs.

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Players Mentioned

Riley Figueiras

Jimmy McCool

Syracuse University Athletics