#7 Orange Open ACC Play with Win Over #4 Duke

Saturday, March 28

Syracuse, N.Y.

2 p.m.

Syracuse University

9-2, 1-0

Duke

8-1, 0-1

Duke

Syracuse

3/28/2026 4:31:00 PM | Men's Lacrosse

Box Score Home Tickets Highlights Postgame Press Conference Photo Gallery

SYRACUSE, N.Y. – In another one-goal classic, No. 7 Syracuse held off a late charge from No. 4 Duke to open ACC play with a 16-15 win Saturday afternoon at the JMA Wireless Dome. A crowd of 9,304 watched the Orange improve to 9-2 on the season.

Luke Rhoa led Syracuse with three goals, including the go-ahead man-up tally with 2:46 remaining in the fourth quarter that proved to be the game-winner. Finn Thomson and Payton Anderson each added three goals, with the latter tacking on two assists, while Joey Spallina controlled the offense with two goals and four assists. Jimmy McCool turned in a complete 60-minute effort in goal, finishing with 11 saves.

Duke (8-1, 0-1 ACC) was paced by Max Sloat's four goals while Michael Ortlieb and Benn Johnston each added three. The Blue Devils split time in goal between starter Patrick Jameison and Henry Blake, who played the final 37 minutes and made six saves.

How It Happened

The first quarter was everything the crowd paid for. Duke struck first on a Tomas Delgado goal just under three minutes in, but Syracuse answered immediately as Billy Dwan III equalized off a Finn Thomson feed in transition. The Orange built a 3-1 advantage on goals from Thomson and Michael Leo before Duke rattled off three of the next four to take a 5-4 lead. Back-to-back goals from Payton Anderson and Bogue Hahn, the latter with 43 seconds remaining on a Tucker Kellogg feed, sent the teams into the second quarter knotted at five.
Syracuse seized control in the second period, with Spallina's pair of goals pushing the lead to 8-6. Duke scored three straight for a 9-8 lead but Thomson answered with a Spallina-assisted goal to make it 9-9, and Sloat's finish with 19 seconds left gave the Blue Devils a 10-9 edge at the half.
Drew Angelo's goal just six seconds into the third quarter knotted the score at 10, and Syracuse used a pair of man-up conversions, both by Rhoa, assisted by Leo and Spallina, to push the lead to 13-11. Duke's Ortlieb pulled the Blue Devils within one twice, and Benn Johnston kept Duke within striking distance heading into the fourth at 14-13.
The fourth quarter was a study in resilience. Anderson pushed the Orange lead to 15-13. With under three minutes to play, Rhoa converted the man-up opportunity off a Spallina assist to give Syracuse a two-goal lead. Sloat cut the deficit to one with 41 seconds remaining, but the Orange held on to secure the ACC opening win.

Behind the Numbers

Rhoa's three-goal, man-up clincher game lifted his season total to 17 goals.
Thomson reached 24 goals on the season with his three-score performance.
Anderson totaled three goals and two assists for five points, moving to 15 goals on the year.
McCool's 11-save, complete-game effort earned the win in a game that featured 10 lead changes and five ties.
Syracuse went 3-for-5 on the extra man; Duke converted 1-of-3, all of which were 30 second technicals against the Orange.
John Mullen went 15-for-30 at the faceoff dot (50%), including several late possessions that proved critical in the fourth quarter. Angelo was 3-for-4 including the spark in the third quarter.
Both teams finished with 34 ground balls.
Spallina became just the second played in program history to reach the 300 point, joining all-time pointers leader Mike Powell in the elite club. Spallin's six-point day pushed his career total to 301.