Syracuse women’s lacrosse dropped its season opener Friday night, falling 9-5 to No. 7 Maryland after the Terrapins built an early lead and relied on strong goaltending to hold off a late push.
Despite being outshot 38-19, Maryland capitalized on early scoring opportunities while goaltender JJ Suriano anchored the defense with 16 saves. Syracuse goalkeeper Daniella Guyette recorded eight saves on 17 shots on goal.
Maryland opened the game with three consecutive goals in the first quarter and extended the advantage to 6-1 midway through the second period. Caroline Trinkaus ended the early scoring drought for Syracuse with a goal early in the second quarter and later added a second tally in the third period to lead the Orange with two goals.
Syracuse trimmed the deficit late in the third quarter when Molly Guzik scored, bringing the score to 7-3 entering the final frame. Guzik also contributed six draw controls, while Mackenzie Salentre led the defensive effort with four caused turnovers. Joely Caramelli and Mileena Cotter added fourth-quarter goals to complete the Orange scoring.
Maryland’s Lauren Lapointe paced the Terrapins with five goals, including two in the opening quarter and two more early in the fourth to help secure the victory.
Syracuse returns to action Friday, February 13, hosting No. 1 North Carolina at 2:30 p.m.
Kyle leads sports coverage and hosts the Concrete Jungle podcast. Have a lead or question? Send it to [email protected].