5 Things to Know: Syracuse at Virginia

Syracuse hits the road for the first time this season, heading to Klöckner Stadium to face No. 2 Virginia on Saturday in Charlottesville. Here's five things to know about the matchup.

1. ORANGE LOOKING TO BOUNCE BACK
Syracuse is seeking to rebound from a 14-10 loss to No. 1 Maryland on Sunday. While 'Cuse is facing its second top-two opponent in the matter of a week, the good news for Syracuse is that the program has a track record of putting losses behind them.

Syracuse is 74-26 in their last-100 games following a loss. In the last-40 years, 'Cuse has had just 14 losing streaks (defined as 2-or-more consecutive losses).

2. X FACTOR
The faceoff X will be a spot to watch in Saturday's game. Jakob Phaup and UVA's Petey LaSalla are two of the more experienced faceoff men in the nation. The duo both rank in the top-12 nationally among active players in career faceoffs taken.

Phaup enters this weekend's game ranked sixth nationally in faceoff win percentage at .652 percent. He was crucial to both of Syracuse's wins over the Cavaliers last season, winning 46-of-60 faceoffs and collecting 17 ground balls across the two victories.

3. DORDEVIC FITTING IN ON ATTACK
In his first two collegiate starts on attack, Tucker Dordevic has had two five goal, six point performances to lead the Orange.

He's the first 'Cuse player to post back-to-back 5+ goal games since 2015, when Dylan Donahue did so against Duke and Notre Dame in consecutive weeks. Donahue finished that season with 50 goals, the seventh-most goals in a single season by a player in SU history.

4. THE VIRGINIA SERIES IS AS GOOD AS IT GETS
Five of the last seven games between 'Cuse and UVA have been decided by one goal and the series is 20-18 in favor of SU. Prior to last year's sweep, the teams were knotted at 18 wins apiece in the series and had each scored an identical number of goals.

Two of the elite programs in the sport, the teams have won 18 NCAA Championships and have played to a one-goal game in 17 of their 38 all-time meetings.

5. TWICE AS NICE
Fans get a double-dose of home Syracuse lacrosse next week. On Wednesday, Syracuse hosts Army for their third-straight game vs. a ranked opponent. On Sunday, it could be a fourth, as Hobart is currently the first team outside the USILA Top-20. Regardless it'll surely be a hotly contested game for another installment of the nation's second-oldest lacrosse series for the Kraus-Simmons Trophy.

Tickets are available at Cuse.com/Tickets.

Syracuse University Athletics

Players Mentioned

Tucker Dordevic

Jakob Phaup

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