SU Earns No. 7 Seed in NCAA Tournament
5/3/2009 10:46:44 PM | Women's Lacrosse
INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. –Syracuse is the No. 7 seed in the 2009 NCAA Women's Lacrosse Tournament and hosts Boston University in the first round on Sunday, May 10 at 3:30 p.m. in the Carrier Dome. The Orange is making its eighth appearance in the national tournament and is hosting a first-round contest for the second straight year.
Syracuse, under the guidance of second-year head coach Gary Gait, earned an at-large bid after winning five of its last six contests and finishing the regular season with a 13-4 record. It marks the third straight year the Orange has won 13 or more games. Syracuse tied for the BIG EAST regular-season title with a 6-1 mark in conference play. Boston University earned an automatic bid by defeating New Hampshire, 16-6, in the title game of the America East Tournament. The Terriers are 15-3 this season.
Sunday's game will be the second meeting between the two schools this season. In the March 4 contest in the Carrier Dome, the Orange scored eight unanswered goals in the second half to erase a two-goal halftime deficit on its way to a 17-8 victory. Overall, Syracuse holds a 6-1 advantage in the series.
Tickets for Syracuse's first-round game are $5 for adults and $3 for youth ages 12 and under. Parking will be free in the Dome West lots. For more information on tickets, contact the Carrier Dome Box Office at 1-888-DOMETIX.
The Orange is one of three BIG EAST schools to make the 16-team tournament field. BIG EAST Tournament champion Notre Dame earned the No. 6 seed and hosts Vanderbilt in the first round. Georgetown received an at-large bid and plays at No. 8 seed Princeton. Four-time defending national champion Northwestern earned the No. 1 seed.
The winner of the Syracuse-Boston University game will take on the winner between No. 2 seed Maryland and Colgate in the quarterfinals.
Syracuse is making its third straight appearance in the NCAA Tournament and its fourth in the last five years. The Orange appeared in four straight NCAA Tournaments from 2000-03 and again in 2005, 2007 and 2008. Syracuse has an all-time record of 3-7 in NCAA Tournament play. Last season, the Orange earned a program-best No. 5 seed and hosted a playoff game in the Carrier Dome for the first time in program history. Syracuse won its first-round contest for the second consecutive year, defeating Towson, 21-9. In the quarterfinals, the Orange beat North Carolina, 13-11, to advance to the NCAA Tournament semifinals for the first time in school history, where it lost to eventual national champion Northwestern.
