Syracuse University
NCAA Quarterfinals vs. #5 Georgetown
5/23/2004 8:18:20 PM | Men's Lacrosse
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ITHACA, NY -- Senior midfielder Sean Lindsay (Cortlandt Manor, N.Y./Lakeland-Panas) scored with five seconds remaining in the fourth quarter to give No. 4-seeded Syracuse (13-2) an 8-7 victory against Georgetown in the NCAA Division I men's lacrosse quarterfinals at Cornell's Schoellkopf Field. The win sends the Orange to the NCAA semifinals for the 22nd consecutive season. SU will take on the tournament's top seed, Johns Hopkins, at 2 p.m. on Saturday, May 29 at M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore. It is the second straight season that the Orange and Blue Jays will meet in the national semifinals.
"Once I came off the sideline and realized that there were only five seconds left, I started going crazy - 22 straight final fours became a reality," said Lindsay after the game. "We have a lot of seniors on this team. We have more tournament experience than any other team in the whole tournament. We are a very determined group. We came in here together and know each other real well. We're real focused and determined on what we want to get done. We have a really, really tough mountain to climb next week. We'll enjoy this win until the sun goes down and then Hopkins. It's right in front of us."
Georgetown (11-4) nearly ended Syracuse's remarkable streak. The Hoyas held a 6-4 advantage with 10:07 left in the third quarter after Walid Hajj converted a pass from Sean Denihan. They went up 7-6 at the 11:09 mark of the fourth quarter when Denihan registered his game-high fourth goal off a feed from Brian Young.
SU's experienced midfield line of Lindsay and seniors Steve Vallone (Corning, N.Y./Corning East) and Kevin Dougherty (Syracuse, N.Y./Henninger)stepped it up down the stretch. Dougherty created his own shot while isolated on the right side of the cage. He rolled past his defender and sent a shot to the bottom of the net which tied the game at 7-7 with 8:19 remaining in the contest. With less than five minutes to play, Georgetown had possession and took its time working the ball around for a good shot. The Hoyas attempted at least three shots that were either wide or saved by SU goaltender Jay Pfeifer (Towson, Md./Gilman). The Syracuse defense withstood the pressure in the final five minutes and junior close defender Scott Ditzell (Geneva, N.Y./Geneva) forced Hajj to cough the ball up. Ditzell picked up the groundball and with 1:43 remaining, SU called timeout. The Orange worked the ball behind the cage to Crockett who delivered a pass to senior attackman Brian Nee (Cockeysville, Md./Boys' Latin). Crockett's five-yard shot from the left wing was saved by GU goaltender Rich D'Andrea. Nee was injured on the play and the game was delayed until he was able to leave the field by his own ability.
Georgetown was awarded the ball and within seconds was called off-sides. Possession was given to the Orange with less than a minute and it used its last timeout. Out of the huddle, the SU offense worked the ball around the perimeter until it found its way into Vallone's stick. Vallone felt the sense of urgency to make something happen and delivered the ball to a cutting Lindsay who flashed to the middle with determination. He caught the ball in traffic and just as quickly got rid of it with an overhand bouncer into the Georgetown goal.
Pfeifer had 19 saves against the Hoyas for the second time in 16 days. He tied his career-high with 19 saves in the final regular-season game against Georgetown in Washington on May 7. It was the most saves for Pfeifer in an NCAA playoff game since the 2002 semifinals when he recorded 19 saves against Virginia. Pfeifer upped his NCAA Tournament record to 7-1.
Denihan scored three first-quarter goals for Georgetown, while freshman attackman Trevor Casey added a score to give the Hoyas a 4-2 advantage after the first 15 minutes.
SU sophomore attackman Brian Crockett (Yorktown, N.Y./Yorktown) tallied the game's first goal just 56 seconds into the contest. Dougherty and Lindsay connected for SU's second goal which tied the game at 2-2 with 5:46 remaining in the first quarter. Despite a 30-20 edge in shots in the first half, the Orange went scoreless for a span of 27:24. Crockett hit two pipes and had one shot rattle in and out during that time. Senior attackman Alex Zink (Rowayton, Conn./Darien) ended the drought with his 13th goal of the season off a pass from Dougherty with 3:22 remaining in the second period. Zink blasted the ball into the upper left corner of the net past D'Andrea, who recorded 13 first-half saves and finished the game with 18.
Trailing 4-3 with less than a minute to play in the first half, Syracuse called timeout. In its effort to hold on for the final shot, SU lost the ball in its offensive end. Georgetown quickly recovered and pushed the ball upfield. Star defenseman Brodie Merrill unleashed a shot from 15 yards out with 18 seconds remaining which was good for his third goal of the season. It gave the Hoyas a 5-3 halftime lead.
Syracuse freshman midfielder Danny Brennan (Farmingdale, N.Y./Farmingdale)did an exceptional job at the face-off X against Georgetown's Andy Corno who came into the game leading the nation in face-off winning percentage. Brennan won eight of 19 draws, including 4-of-5 in the third quarter. The rookie is now 39-of-70 (.557) on faceoffs since he attempted his first one of the season in the Loyola game on April 10.
Orange superstar Michael Powell (West Carthage, N.Y./Carthage) finished with a team-high three goals to increase his career point total to 297 points. Powell's first goal of the game came at 11:42 of the third quarter and pulled SU to within 5-4 of the Hoyas. He fired a low blast past D'Andrea at 8:25 of the third period and then stuck a shot from 10 yards out just three minutes later to tie the game at 6-6.
SU won its eighth straight game against Georgetown and now controls the all-time series 11-2. On May 7, Syracuse defeated the Hoyas, 13-9, in Washington, D.C.
The Orange has a chance to avenge one of its two losses this season when it meets Johns Hopkins (13-1) in the semifinals next week. The Blue Jays defeated Syracuse, 17-5, on March 20 at Homewood Field. They have outscored SU, 36-13, in the past two meetings. In last year's semifinals, Hopkins posted a 19-8 victory against the Orange at M&T Bank Stadium.
The other national semifinal next week will pit No. 2-seeded Navy (14-2) against No. 6-seeded Princeton (11-3) at 11:30 a.m. on Saturday, May 29. Both games will be televised LIVE by ESPN2.
SYRACUSE 8, GEORGETOWN 7
Syracuse 2-1-3-2=8
Georgetown 4-1-1-1=7
Syracuse Goals: Michael Powell 3, Sean Lindsay 2, Brian Crockett 1, Kevin Dougherty 1, Alex Zink 1.
Syracuse Assists: Brian Crockett 2, Kevin Dougherty 2, Steve Vallone 2.
Georgetown Goals: Sean Denihan 4, Walid Hajj 1, Trevor Casey 1, Brodie Merrill 1.
Georgetown Assists:Sean Denihan 1, Neal Goldman 1, Brian Young 1.
Shots: Syracuse 49, Georgetown 41
Groundballs: Georgetown 39, Syracuse 27
Faceoffs: Georgetown 11-19, Syracuse 8-19
Clears: Georgetown 20-26, Syracuse 16-23
Extra-man: Georgetown 1-5, Syracuse 0-7
Saves: Syracuse 19 (Jay Pfeifer), Georgetown 18 (Rich D'Andrea)
Penalties: Georgetown 8/6:00, Syracuse 5/3:30
Attendance: 11,480
