Lacrosse Orangemen to Meet Notre Dame in Their 19th Consecutive Final Four Appearance
5/24/2001 10:45:46 AM | Men's Lacrosse
Top-seeded Syracuse (12-2) will appear in its 19th-consecutive national semifinal game when it takes on fifth-seeded Notre Dame at noon on May 26, at Rutgers Stadium in Piscataway, N.J. The Orangemen, winners of their last seven games, made it to this year's final four with an 18-13 quarterfinal victory against Hofstra last Saturday at Hofstra Stadium. A triumph against the Irish will advance SU, the defending national champion, to its 12th NCAA title game. The winner meets either Princeton or Towson in the grand finale on Memorial Day at 11 a.m.
Notre Dame is making its first-ever appearance in a national semifinal contest. The Irish reached this point by defeating Bucknell (12-7) and Johns Hopkins (13-9) during the past two weeks.
This will mark the first time that Syracuse and Notre Dame officially meet in men's lacrosse. In October of 1999, the two teams played one another in the ninth annual Great Pumpkin Stick-Out, a fall tournament played at SU's Coyne Field. The Orangemen defeated the Irish, 13-10.
ON THE AIR
Radio
The school's flagship radio station for lacrosse, WFBL 1050 AM will broadcast the quarterfinal game against Hofstra. Carter Blackburn is the play-by-play announcer, while Syracuse equipment manager Kyle Fetterly offers a unique perspective as the color analyst. The broadcasts can be heard through www.suathletics.com.
WAER-FM 88 will also carry the action from championship weekend at Rutgers.
Television
ESPN2 will broadcast the two Division I semifinal games, beginning with the Syracuse/Notre Dame contest at noon on May 26. The Princeton/Towson game will begin approximately 45 minutes following the end of the first game.
The national championship tilt will be televised by ESPN at 10:55 a.m. on May 28.
Time Warner 13 broadcasted all but one of SU's eight home games this season. The games were aired on a tape delay basis.
Syracuse in the NCAA Championship
This is Syracuse's 22nd appearance (19th consecutive) in the NCAA Championship. The Orangemen have now participated in 22 of 31 NCAA tournaments. The championship was inaugurated in 1971 and Syracuse made its first-ever appearance in 1979 (Coach John Desko and Assistant Coach Kevin Donahue's senior year). The Orangemen returned in 1980 and 1981, but failed to qualify in 1982. Since 1983, Syracuse has participated every year.
Syracuse and the No. 1 Seed
This is the seventh time and second-straight year that Syracuse has earned the No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament. The previous seasons SU was seeded No. 1 were: 1988, 1989, 1990, 1992, 1994 and 2000. Syracuse went on to win the national championship as the No. 1 seed four times (1988, 1989, 1990 and 2000).
How No. 1 Seeds Have Fared in the Championship
In the 30 NCAA Tournaments that have preceded the 2001 Championship, the No. 1-seeded team has gone on to win the national title 14 times, including the 2000 champion Orangemen. Top seeds have advanced to the national title game only to lose eight times. They have lost in the semifinals seven times. In 1999, Loyola became the first No. 1 seed to lose in the quarterfinals. Syracuse, the No. 8 seed, was responsible for bouncing the Greyhounds out of contention.
The No. 1 seed has advanced past its first-round game in 30 of 31 NCAA Championships.
How Syracuse Has Fared in its First-Round Games
Out of 22 NCAA Tournaments that the Orangemen have appeared in, they won their first-round game 20 times, including last weekend's 18-13 quarterfinal victory against Hofstra. The only two seasons that SU lost its first outing were 1979 (16-13 to Maryland in the quarterfinals at College Park) and 1981 (13-6 to North Carolina in the quarterfinals at Chapel Hill).
Syracuse has not lost its first game of the NCAA Tournament in 19 years.
SU in the NCAA Semifinals
This is Syracuse's 20th appearance in the NCAA semifinals and 19th straight. The Orangemen are 11-8 in NCAA semifinal games. Their most recent appearance was last season, a 14-12 victory against Johns Hopkins.
This is the first time that Syracuse is meeting an opponent in the national semifinals that it has NEVER officially played before.
The only other program in NCAA Division I college athletics that can boast a streak of 19-consecutive semifinal appearances is the University of North Carolina women's soccer team.
Great Pumpkin Stick-Out - October 16, 1999
Although Syracuse and Notre Dame have never officially played one another, they did meet in a regulation-length contest at SU's Coyne Field on October 16, 1999, as part of the Great Pumpkin Stick-Out.
The Orangemen went 3-0 that day, defeating Notre Dame (13-10), Nazareth (12-3) and Colgate (12-2).
Against the Irish, Ryan Powell had a team-high four points (one goal, three assists). Devin Darcangelo led SU with three goals, while Rob Mulligan finished with 14 saves. Other players on the current SU roster that contributed that day were: Josh Coffman (2-1), Jason Januszkiewicz (1-1), Spencer Wright (1-0), Pat Kennedy (1-0) and Tom Hardy (0-1).
Leading the way for Notre Dame was Tom Glatzel with two goals and two assists, Todd Ulrich with two goals and one assist, and David Ulrich with one goal and one assist. Others who scored goals for the Irish were: Jon Harvey (2-0), Devin Ryan (1-0), Steve Bishko (1-0) and John Flandina (1-1).
SU Records 12 Wins for the Third-Straight Season
With its 12-2 record this season, it marks the third-straight season that the Orangemen have won at least a dozen games. With John Desko as head coach (three seasons), the Orangemen are averaging 13 wins per season.
Last year's 15 victories were the most since 1988. The 1988 team went 15-0 and won the national championship. There have been only four 15+ winning seasons in the history of SU men's lacrosse (1922, 1984, 1988 and 2000). The 1922 team won a school-record 17 games.
SU in NCAA Tournament Games Held at Rutgers
Syracuse has won two of its seven national championships at Rutgers (1983 and 1990). The Orangemen are 5-2 overall at Rutgers in NCAA Tournament play. The two losses occurred in the semifinal round.
Last season, SU defeated Georgetown, 17-13, in the quarterfinals at Rutgers Stadium.
Year Round Opponent W-L Score 1983 Finals Johns Hopkins W 17-16 1987 Semis Cornell L 18-15 1990 Semis North Carolina W 21-10 Finals Loyola W 21-9 1996 Quarters North Carolina W 19-12 1998 Semis Princeton L 11-10 2000 Quarters Georgetown W 17-13
Quarterfinal Attendance at Hofstra Ranks Fourth Best
There were 10,510 people in attendance at the NCAA quarterfinal game between Syracuse and Hofstra last Saturday in Hempstead, N.Y. That ranks as the fourth-largest quarterfinal crowd in NCAA history.
Attendance Usually High When Syracuse is in the Semifinals
NCAA attendance figures have been at their highest when Syracuse is one of the four teams left on championship weekend. The top three total paid semifinal attendance figures in NCAA Division I history included games that the Orangemen were a part of. Each were held at Maryland's Byrd Stadium.
The highest paid attendance for the national semifinals held at Rutgers was 21,194 in 1998.
Highest-Ranked Paid Attendance for the Semifinals Year Att. Venue Participants/Results 1997 30,580 Byrd Stadium Princeton 10, Duke 9 Maryland 18, Syracuse 17 1995 30,392 Byrd Stadium Maryland 16, Johns Hopkins 8 Syracuse 20, Virginia 13 1999 27,586 Byrd Stadium Syracuse 13, Georgetown 9 Virginia 16, Johns Hopkins 11 Top-Ranked Paid Attendance for a Championship Game Year Att. Venue Participants/Results 1995 26,229 Byrd Stadium Syracuse 13, Maryland 9
Syracuse Program Approaching 700 All-Time Wins
The all-time record of the Syracuse men's lacrosse program is 698-274-15 (.715). The Orangemen need to win the national championship in order for the program to reach the 700-win milestone in 2001. Johns Hopkins is the only program in Division I that has won more than 700 games.
Mulligan Records 600th Career Save Against Hofstra in Quarterfinals Career Goaltender Saves at Syracuse
1. 766 Jamie Molloy 1977-80 2. 692 Tom Nims 1981-85 3. 632 Jason Gebhardt 1994-98 4. 612 Paul Bishop 1971-73 5. 602 Rob Mulligan 1998-present
Powell Makes Immediate Impact on Orange Program and the Nation
First-year attackman Michael Powell (Carthage, NY/Carthage) is leading the Orangemen in scoring with 62 points (28 goals, team-high 34 assists) or a 4.43 point-per-game average. Powell was tied for third in the country in points per game this season and was fourth in the nation in assists per game (2.43).
Syracuse Lacrosse Freshman Scoring Records (Since 1971) Points in a Season
74 (33-41) John Zulberti 1986 67 (39-28) Casey Powell 1995 63 (42-21) Larry Storrier 1976 62 (28-34) Michael Powell 2001 54 (28-26) Tim O'Hara 1977 52 (32-20) Brad Short 1979 50 (37-13) Oliver Hill 1972 42 (22-20) Barry Powless 1976 37 (21-16) Tom Nelson 1984 36 (14-22) Rob Kavovit 1994 35 (22-13) Charlie Lockwood 1991 34 (22-12) Rob McCarthy 1978 (11-23) Sid Hill 1971 33 (16-17) Ryan Powell 1997 31 (21-10) Brad Kotz 1982 29 (25-4) Gary Gait 1987 (11-18) Mike Cornelius 1974
You've Heard About SU's Offense, But Check Out the "D"
With all of the firepower Syracuse has on offense, the Orange defense often gets overlooked. However, the 2001 defensive unit may be SU's best in 14 years. The 113 goals Syracuse has given up this season is the fewest amount since 1982 - when the team yielded just 95 goals, but in just 10 games.
This season, the Orangemen finished seventh in the nation in scoring defense, giving up a measly 7.69 goals per game during the regular season. That was the lowest average a Syracuse defensive unit allowed since 1980 when the Orangemen gave up an average of 7.31 goals per game.
In fact, in the past 22 years, there have been only four seasons when Syracuse has held its opponents to fewer than eight goals per game.
The Orangemen's average rose above eight goals per game after last weekend's Hofstra contest, when they gave up 13 goals. The eight goals Hofstra scored by halftime were the most SU had allowed an opponent to score during the first two quarters all season. Johns Hopkins tallied eight goals against the Orangemen in the second half of their March 17th meeting.
Year Team's Record Goals Allowed Average 2001 11-2 113 8.07 2000 15-1 139 8.69 1999 12-5 174 10.24 1998 11-3 144 10.29 1997 11-3 166 11.86 1996 11-4 165 11.00 1995 13-2 165 11.00 1994 13-2 172 11.47 1993 12-2 143 10.21 1992 13-2 167 11.13 1991 12-3 149 9.93 1990 13-0 124 9.54 1989 14-1 132 8.80 1988 15-0 118 7.87 1987 9-4 149 11.46 1986 14-3 136 8.00 1985 14-2 143 8.94 1984 15-1 126 7.88 1983 14-1 135 9.00 1982 6-4 95 9.50 1981 7-4 95 8.64 1980 12-2 95 7.31
Warm Weather Means Orangemen Heat Up
As the warm weather comes to Central New York, the Syracuse lacrosse team also tends to get hot. Since 1990, SU is 62-5 in the month of April and 11-1 in regular-season May games. Add those numbers to the 25-7 NCAA record since 1990 (all in the month of May) and Syracuse is a combined 98-13 in April and May since 1990, good for an .883 winning percentage.
Cercy's Face-Off Wins Give Orangemen Possession and a Huge Advantage
Senior face-off specialist Chris Cercy (Bethpage, NY/Bethpage) is winning 70.8 percent of the faceoffs he lines up to take. He is leading the nation in face-off winning percentage for the second-straight season. He won 15 of the game's last 17 faceoffs against Hofstra and finished 24 of 34 for the contest.
Coffman Makes Statement Against Hofstra in Quarterfinals
Junior Josh Coffman (Carthage, NY/Carthage) had one of the best performances of his career in one of the biggest games of his tenure, the 2001 quarterfinal game against Hofstra.
The Tewaaraton Trophy finalist scored four goals and dished out two assists to lead Syracuse and tie for the game high in points (six). All four goals that Coffman tallied were unassisted, including his man-down marker at 11:49 of the second quarter which cut into Hofstra's four-goal lead and seemed to spark the SU offense.
Coffman tied the game at 8-8 with his second goal of the afternoon, just 45 seconds into the third period. He set up Michael Powell's tally that tied the game once again at 9-9. His third goal of the contest, at 10:35 of the third, gave SU its first lead of the game, 11-10. He added a goal and an assist in the fourth quarter. All in all, Coffman made a strong case for Midfielder of the Year consideration with his strong performance against the Pride
