California Dreaming: Men's Lacrosse Travels Out West
3/9/2005 9:09:35 PM | Men's Lacrosse
SYRACUSE, N.Y. -- Syracuse (1-1) will play its first-ever game in the state of California when it participates in the inaugural "First 4," an elite NCAA lacrosse invitational being held at the Home Depot Center in Carson, Calif. The event was created to showcase the top Division I men’s college lacrosse programs in the country. It is being organized by Pantheon International, the same outfit responsible for the John Wooden Classic in Anaheim and the John Wooden Tradition in Indianapolis.
SU will play No. 11-ranked Georgetown (1-1) in the second game of a doubleheader at 7:30 p.m. Pacific Time. The game will air LIVE in Syracuse on Time Warner Channel 26 at 10:30 p.m. ET. CSTV: College Sports Television is broadcasting both games. Joe Beninati will handle play-by-play duties, while Syracuse alum Paul Carcaterra ‘97 will provide color commentary. The first game, which is scheduled to begin at 5 p.m. Pacific Time, features No. 10-ranked North Carolina vs. No. 14-ranked Notre Dame.
This will be the furthest west the Orange has traveled for a game. In March 2002, the Orange participated in the Pioneer Face-Off Classic at the University of Denver. SU faced Air Force and Denver in a pair of games and won both outings.
This year’s fifth-ranked Orange are coming off a 12-11 loss to Virginia. In the fourth quarter, the Cavs erased a 10-9 Syracuse lead with three-straight goals, including what proved to be the game-winning goal by John Christmas with 3:03 remaining in the contest. Virginia goalie Kip Turner had a career day with 18 saves. Brett Bucktooth and Brian Crockett each notched three goals for the Orange.
Georgetown brings a 1-1 record into this matchup. The Hoyas lost a 13-6 decision at Maryland on Feb. 26, then bounced back to defeat St. John’s on the road, by a score of 16-6. Sean Denihan leads the Hoyas in points (seven) and goals (four) so far this season. Trevor Casey has attempted a team-high 13 shots and has converted for three goals. The starting goaltender is Rich D’Andrea. He has 10 saves in two games.
