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Finding Their Way
Syracuse entered 2012 with more questions than it had in a long time. Head coach John Desko was tasked with replacing a 2011 senior class that recorded a 60-8 record and won two national titles in four seasons. That group’s departure left several holes in the lineup that needed to be filled.
Replacing seven starters and eight All-Americans proved to be a challenging, ongoing process. Despite the uncertainty at the beginning of the year, the Orange forged a 9-8 record and made lacrosse history by winning the inaugural BIG EAST Championship. SU’s win in the conference title game propelled the team into the NCAA Tournament for the fifth straight year, and the 32nd time in program history.
Individually, Brian Megill authored a breakout season as the captain of the team’s young defense. The Clark, N.J. product turned in a terrific all-around campaign. He led the Orange in ground balls (62) and set a team record with 37 caused turnovers on his way to second-team All-America honors. Offensively, Megill totaled three points (one goal, two assists) and developed into one of the team’s best options at the faceoff X.
Megill’s leadership helped ease the transition to college lacrosse for players like rookie defenseman Brandon Mullins (27 ground balls, 13 caused turnovers) and freshman goaltender Bobby Wardwell (83 saves, 8.85 goals-against average). The pair blossomed into mainstays in the Orange lineup by the middle of the season, and they were just two examples of underclassmen that excelled as their playing time increased.
At the opposite end of the field, All-BIG EAST Second Team performer Tommy Palasek led the Orange in points (54) and assists (30). Sophomore attackman Derek Maltz demonstrated his scoring prowess, leading the team with 28 goals. In addition, veterans Tim Desko (22 goals, 11 assists), Bobby Eilers (22 goals, eight assists) and JoJo Marasco (12 goals, 19 assists) all recorded 30-point seasons.
THE REGULAR SEASON
One of the many questions surrounding the team was who would replace John Galloway in goal. That question was answered – sort of – as John Desko elected to employ a goalie rotation versus Albany in the season opener. Matthew Lerman started in the cage and made six saves in the first two periods. Maryland transfer Dominic Lamolinara played the second half and finished with 10 stops. Both players benefitted from a stingy defense that shut out the Great Danes for a stretch of 40:44 in a 12-7 triumph.
The goalie rotation was in effect again the following week against Army, and the Orange overcame a 5-4 halftime deficit to defeat the Black Knights, 10-9, and improve to 2-0 on the year. Lerman started again, but it was Lamolinara who was the hero. His save on Alex Van Krevel’s shot with two seconds to play preserved the one-goal triumph and set up a showdown with top-ranked Virginia March 4 in Charlottesville.
Facing the defending national champions on the road is always a challenge. For an untested team, it can be even more daunting. However, the Orange was unfazed after falling behind, 3-1, and responded by scoring five straight second-quarter goals to take a 6-4 lead at the half. The visitors couldn’t hold the advantage in the second half as the Cavaliers tallied 10 goals after the break, and went on to win, 14-10.
While the result wasn’t what the Orange hoped for, there were a number of positives that came out of the game. First, the Orange stayed within two of the nation’s top team until the final minutes when the Cavaliers tossed in a pair of goals with SU pressing to get the ball back. Second, Maltz and Tim Desko proved to be go-to players when the chips were down. Maltz had a breakout game, scoring five points (three goals, two assists), and Desko also put on an impressive offensive display, scoring three times and recording one assist.
After the Virginia game, the Orange remained on the road for its next two outings. Syracuse traveled to Queens, N.Y. on March 10 for its BIG EAST opener against St. John’s, then paid a visit to archrival Johns Hopkins the week after that.
A much improved Red Storm squad gave the visitors all it could handle, but in the end the Orange prevailed, 9-8, on Tim Desko’s goal with 1:25 left. However, there would be no fourth-quarter magic at Hopkins a week later. The Blue Jays ended their five-game losing streak to the Orange with an 11-7 victory at Homewood Field.
At 3-2, Syracuse returned home to the Carrier Dome and defeated Providence, 10-6, on March 21 to get to 4-2 overall and 2-0 in the BIG EAST.
With games versus four ranked opponents looming between March 25 and April 10, the Providence win was a nice confidence booster. Momentum, though, is a fickle mistress and the Orange couldn’t maintain it, going 1-3 over that stretch to slip to 5-5 on the season. Syracuse lost consecutive outings to Villanova (11-10) at home and Duke (12-10) at the Konica Minolta Big City Classic before rebounding to beat Princeton, 10-9, in the Carrier Dome on April 7. A 12-6 loss to local rival Cornell capped the grueling stretch.
Of the four contests, the Villanova and Princeton games were particularly noteworthy. The loss to the Wildcats was SU’s first in BIG EAST play, snapping the team’s 14-game BIG EAST winning streak that dated back to 2010. It was a dominant stretch that matched Navy for the eighth-longest conference winning streak in NCAA history. The Princeton game was important for a much different reason. It marked the start of a new goaltending era for the Orange as Wardwell made his first career start in the cage and earned the victory. He played the entire game and allowed just five goals in the last three quarters, cementing his place as the starter for the rest of the season.
With only four regular-season games left, Syracuse needed wins to ensure it finished in the top four of the conference standings, thus earning a berth in the first BIG EAST Men’s Lacrosse Championship. The Orange also had to make sure it finished above .500 to maintain its eligibility for an NCAA at-large bid in case it didn’t receive the league’s automatic berth.
Those pressures weighed on Syracuse when it visited Charlotte, N.C. on April 14 to take on Rutgers in the ESPNU Warrior Classic. And the Orange responded as only a Syracuse lacrosse team could. Led by Maltz’s four goals and Palasek’s six points (three goals, three assists), the Orange played its most complete game of the season, routing the Scarlet Knights, 19-6. Syracuse scored 12 straight first-half goals in the contest and never looked back.
The team’s offensive efficiency carried over into its matchup with Hobart three days later. The Orange notched 10 first-half goals, and staved off the Statesmen’s second-half charge to record a 13-12 victory. Maltz was the catalyst again, tallying a career-best six goals to help the Orange retain the Kraus-Simmons Trophy.
Following the Rutgers and Hobart wins, Syracuse’s record stood at 7-5 overall and 3-1 in BIG EAST play. The Orange lost its final home game to Georgetown, 10-8, on April 21, but managed to clinch a BIG EAST Championship berth via goal differential.
The following week, third-ranked Notre Dame blanked the Orange in first half of their regular-season finale. Syracuse rallied after the break to get within one (7-6), but the Irish squeaked out an 8-6 triumph, dropping the Orange’s record to 7-7 heading into the conference tournament.
THE POSTSEASON
Syracuse received the third seed in the inaugural BIG EAST Championship and faced No. 2 seed Villanova on its home field in the semifinals. The other semifinal featured regular-season conference champ Notre Dame and No. 4 seed St. John’s. Most pundits believed Syracuse needed to win the tournament to qualify for the NCAA field. At the very least, the Orange had to defeat Villanova to keep its slim at-large hopes alive. A loss meant the season was over.
With its back to the wall again, Syracuse delivered. The Orange exacted a measure of revenge on Villanova, beating the Wildcats, 15-6, to advance to the conference title game. Contributions came from all over the field. Eilers, who found his goal-scoring touch in the latter portion of the regular season, recorded a career-high four goals. Unsung midfielders Scott Loy, Matt Walters and Hakeem Lecky all had two goals, and faceoff specialist Ricky Buhr turned in a career performance by winning 11-of-20 faceoffs.
The win set up a showdown with upstart St. John’s for the conference tournament title. The Red Storm upset top-seeded Notre Dame to produce a championship game featuring the two lowest seeded teams in the field. St. John’s was no doubt riding high after its victory against the Irish, but the Orange would not be denied. Syracuse shut out the Red Storm in the first half, and built an 8-0 lead before cruising to a 12-4 victory, clinching the league title and an NCAA Tournament berth.
Palasek was named the championship’s Most Outstanding Player. He finished with 10 points (four goals, six assists) in the two games. Wardwell, Megill and Eilers joined him on the all-tournament team.
In the NCAA playoffs, the Orange drew No. 3 seed Duke in the first round. The game was played in Durham, N.C., and marked the first opening-round road game for Syracuse since 2005. It was also a rematch of the April 1 Konica Minolta Big City Classic contest won by the Blue Devils.
Duke was undefeated at home and typically had its way with opponents at Koskinen Stadium. It appeared that would be the case again as the Blue Devils raced out to a 3-0 lead less than five minutes into the first quarter. The Orange slowly clawed back though, and eventually evened the game at 5-5 early in the third quarter on a goal by Kevin Drew.
After Drew’s score, the Blue Devils used a dominating performance at the faceoff X to spur a 4-0 run that resulted in a 9-5 lead. This time the deficit was too much for the Orange, and its season came to a close with a 12-9 loss.
For a team that began the year in transition, John Desko learned a lot about his squad as the season went along. Wardwell demonstrated the poise and potential to be the team’s goalie of the future. Maltz, Lecky, Walters, Mullins, Henry Schoonmaker and many others received their first extensive tastes of Division I college lacrosse. As the new leaders of the program, that experience should pay future dividends.
