Emma Ward etched her name into the Syracuse record books on Wednesday night, becoming the program’s all-time leader in career assists, but her milestone wasn’t enough to keep the Orange alive in the ACC Tournament as Syracuse fell to Stanford, 15-10, in the quarterfinal round.
Ward, a graduate student, entered the game tied with former star Katie Rowan at 164 career assists. Her second-quarter helper pushed her to 165, securing her place at the top of the program’s leaderboard.
The Orange showed early promise, rallying from an early 4-1 deficit with a five-goal run to take a 5-4 lead after the first quarter. Syracuse kept the momentum going into halftime, holding an 8-5 advantage.
However, the second half belonged to Stanford. The Cardinal stormed out with five unanswered goals in the third quarter to reclaim the lead and never looked back, pulling away in the final frame.
Gracie Britton paced Syracuse with three goals and two assists, while Alexa Vogelman added a hat trick.
With a 9-8 overall record, the Orange now sit on the NCAA Tournament bubble. Syracuse must wait until Selection Sunday on May 4 to learn its postseason fate.
Kyle leads sports coverage and hosts the Concrete Jungle podcast. Have a lead or question? Send it to [email protected].