#2 Orangemen Hit the Road to Face #5 Virginia in Men's Lacrosse
3/1/2002 12:17:12 AM | Men's Lacrosse
Game Two: Syracuse at Virginia
Sat., March 2, 2002, 3:00 p.m., Klöckner Stadium, Charlottesville, Va.
ESPN Radio 1260 AM
This will mark the 15th meeting between Syracuse and Virginia in men's lacrosse. The Orangemen own an 8-6 advantage in the series which began in 1938, and have won six of the last seven meetings.
Last season the two teams met on March 3 in the Carrier Dome where Syracuse posted a 13-7 victory. The Orangemen capitalized on Conor Gill's three-minute, nonreleasable, illegal stick penalty by scoring three extra-man goals at the start of the second quarter. SU led 6-3 at halftime and 9-4 after three quarters. Michael Powell had a game-high six points (two goals, four assists), while Michael Springer netted four goals and Spencer Wright tallied a hat trick.
The last time Virginia beat Syracuse was in the 1999 NCAA title game, 12-10.
Other Odds and Ends About the Syracuse-Virginia Rivalry
Proving how fierce this rivalry has become, just look at the goal differential between these two teams. During the last seven meetings, the games have been decided by an average margin of 2.29 goals.
In the 14 games played, Syracuse has outscored Virginia, 193-184.
In 1997, the two teams combined for 43 goals in a 22-21 Orange victory. That set an SU record for most goals scored by both teams in a game.
Powell Wastes Little Time in Setting New Career Highs
Sophomore attackman Michael Powell (Carthage, N.Y./Carthage), the Preseason Player of the Year, scored a career-high five goals and had a game-high eight points in Syracuse's 18-11 season-opening victory against No. 20-ranked Army last Saturday. The eight points were a personal best for Powell and it marked the most points registered by an Orangeman since the 2000 NCAA quarterfinals when older brother, Ryan Powell, torched Georgetown with four goals and four assists.
The Army contest was Michael Powell's eighth career game with at least five points. He had three games last season in which he posted six points (vs. Loyola, Brown and Virginia).
Springer Climbing Career Goals Chart at Syracuse
If junior attackman Michael Springer (Ridgewood, N.J./Ridgewood) scores against Virginia, he will move into a tie for 19th place on the school's all-time goals chart. He is currently ranked 20th with 89 career goals. Springer, who averaged 2.84 goals per game, in his first two seasons at SU, is on pace to finish his career as one of the top three goal scorers in school history.
He had a goal and an assist in the first game against Army.
Orangemen Enjoy a Strong Fall Semester in the Classroom
Fifteen members of the Syracuse University men's lacrosse team were named to the SU Athletic Director's Honor Roll for the Fall 2001 semester. A total of 240 student-athletes were named to the list, which was established in 1995 to honor student-athletes who achieve a semester grade point average of 3.0 or higher.
Senior John Glatzel (Ellicot City, Md.); junior Dave Puccia (Watertown, N.Y.); sophomores Travis Bryan (Houston, Texas), Nick Donatelli (Endictott, N.Y.), and Steve Vallone (Corning, N.Y.); and freshman Andrew Boyle (Columbus, Ohio) were among the 125 student-athletes who earned a GPA of 3.4 or higher.
Glatzel and Puccia are four-time members of the honor roll, while teammates Bryan, Donatelli, and Vallone were named for the third time.
Sol Bliss (Tully, N.Y.) earned the award for the second time.
Boyle, Tom Hardy (Tully, N.Y.), Brian Nee (Cockyesville, Md.), Kyle Olson (Columbus, Ohio), Jarett Park (Tully, N.Y.), Jake Plunket (Cortland, N.Y.), Andy Starr (Weston, Mass.), Brett Walther (Ardmore, Pa.), and Spencer Wright (San Diego, Calif.) made debut appearances on the honor roll. Boyle, Olson, Park, Plunket, and Starr are freshmen at Syracuse
