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PITTSBURGH, P.A. — Winning is never a guarantee in Division I lacrosse.
Any matchup can go either way no matter how each side matches up on paper, especially in the Atlantic Coast Conference. But entering its bout with Pittsburgh Saturday — a team who hasn’t defeated a ranked opponent since 2022 — it seemed a given Syracuse would take home a decisive victory when it went on a 6-0 scoring run to take a commanding first-half lead.
No. 6 Syracuse (5-4, 2-2 ACC) rebounded from being outscored 4-1 in the third quarter to defeat Pittsburgh (5-3, 1-3 ACC) 17-11 Saturday. SU’s attack bounced back to score six goals in the final quarter to preserve its lead and earn its second ACC win of the season.
The Panthers had only faced one ranked opponent before Saturday’s meeting with Syracuse. Still, the Panthers took it to the Orange right off the hop and looked like the hungrier team in the first three minutes.
After stealing the opening draw from Joely Caramelli, Pitt drew a foul to set itself up nicely with a free-position chance. Despite SU goalie Daniella Guyette’s save, Pitt stayed determined. After scooping up back-to-back ground balls, the Panthers drew first blood on Kaitlyn Giandonato’s goal from the 8-meter.
With Pitt’s Abby Thorne keeping tabs on Emma Ward as she hovered at X, Syracuse’s hands were temporarily tied. Fortunately, depth scoring has been SU’s bread and butter in 2025, as seven players entered Saturday’s bout with eight or more goals. Without Ward registering a point, the Orange embarked on a 3-0 run backed by four unanswered draw controls by Caramelli and Co.
In the wake of SU’s 14-13 overtime loss to No. 7 Johns Hopkins, SU head coach Kayla Treanor made it clear that her team needed to show more discipline in the future. 20-plus fouls in a game simply wasn’t a recipe for success.
Rather than continue their trend of taking sloppy penalties, the Orange allowed the Panthers to make the mistakes for them. Issued fouls left and right — nine total in the first quarter — the Panthers gave the Orange every opportunity to extend their 3-1 lead further. But plagued by untimely turnovers, SU only escaped the opening quarter up 4-3.
The Panthers showed through the first 15 minutes they could hang with one of the nation’s best teams, trailing by just one. However, Syracuse found a new gear in the second quarter, while Pitt faltered.
Sparked by Emma Muchnick’s tally less than five minutes in, Syracuse continued to pad its lead. Including its goal at the end of the first quarter, five different scorers combined to grow SU’s run to six goals.
The one oddity of Syracuse’s dominant run? The absence of Ward’s name on the scoresheet.
While always a viable option at X, the Orange simply didn’t need to heavily rely on Ward with the chances the Panthers gave them in front of the net. Syracuse finished the third quarter with six different players finding the back of the net. None of them were named Ward.
Nullified by six turnovers, four of which were caused by the Orange, the Panthers didn’t notch their fourth goal of the game until 3:50 remained before halftime. By then, Syracuse had already reached nine, solidifying a lead it never relinquished.
Ward finally notched her first point of the afternoon with the primary assist on Molly Guzik’s tally, pushing SU’s cushion to six goals at the half.
After Syracuse flexed depth in the second quarter, the Panthers did the same out of halftime. Suddenly, the Orange became reckless in their own end and while on the attack. Coughing up the ball six times through the first 30 minutes, Syracuse’s attack was stunted in the third quarter.
Led by Jenna Hendrickson’s two tallies, the Panthers moved within shouting distance again and outscored Syracuse 4-1 in the third quarter. Peppering Guyette with nine shots — six on target — the goalkeeper struggled to carry over her strong first-half performance into the second. Without Kaci Benoit or Superia Clark disrupting the play in front of her, she finished a lowly 1-for-5 on saves in the third quarter.
Syracuse’s draw control unit also sputtered, going just 3-for-14 in the circle across the second and third quarters alone. After showing promise against then-No. 6 Stanford, its 14-for-31 mark by the game’s end signified yet another step backward on the draw for SU.
Syracuse’s offense had hit a lull. If it was going to avoid suffering an embarrassing loss after leading by five, its offense needed to come alive again down the final stretch. It did just that.
While not nearly as dominant as it had been in the second quarter, Syracuse’s attack was just just enough in the final frame to keep Pitt’s comeback attempt at bay.
Just 24 seconds in, Ward finally ripped home her first tally of the day directly in front of the goal from the 8-meter line, making good on a player-up chance. Caramelli followed up her effort by capping off her first career hat trick. Assisted by four more goals down the stretch, the Orange outscored the Panthers 6-3 in the final frame to preserve their lead.
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