#10 Orange Roll Past #11 Hopkins

Saturday, March 7

Baltimore, Md.

1 p.m.

Syracuse University

5-2

Johns Hopkins

4-2

Syracuse

Johns Hopkins

Photo by: Larry French

3/7/2026 4:53:00 PM | Men's Lacrosse

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'Cuse Wins Third Straight Over Blue Jays

BALTIMORE – Joey Spallina posted four goals and three assists as No. 10 Syracuse held off No. 11 Johns Hopkins down the stretch for a 12-8 victory Saturday afternoon at Homewood Field, improving to 5-2 on the season.

The Orange took a lead they would not relinquish out of the first quarter and weathered multiple Hopkins runs to claim their third win in as many meetings with the Blue Jays. Jimmy McCool was steady in goal, finishing with 14 saves in the Orange's first trip to Homewood Field since 2022. Finn Thomson added two goals and two assists, while Luke Rhoa chipped in two goals and two assists from the midfield. The hometown kid Billy Dwan III contributed two goals from the defensive end, and Wyatt Hottle and John Mullen rounded out the scoring with a goal apiece.
Johns Hopkins (4-2) kept the game tight throughout, with Matt Collison finishing with three goals to lead the Blue Jays. Chuck Rawson added two goals and two assists, while Hunter Chauvette, Jimmy Ayers, and Charlie Iler each scored once. Oran Gelinas made 12 saves in goal for Hopkins.

Syracuse held the edge in faceoffs, winning 13 of 23 draws. Mullen won 11 of 20 from the X while collecting 10 ground balls, and the Orange won the ground ball battle overall, 30-28. Hopkins held a significant shot advantage at 53-33 but McCool's 14-save performance kept the Blue Jays at bay.

How it Happened

The Orange struck first as Rhoa finished off an assist from Hottle at 13:07 of the first quarter. Thomson doubled the lead with under six minutes left in the first on a Spallina feed before Collison pulled Hopkins within one with an unassisted tally late in the frame.
The second quarter saw Syracuse ride a three-goal burst to take control. Thomson scored again off another Spallina assist before Dwan and Spallina added back-to-back goals to push the lead to 5-2. Hopkins answered with two straight from Rawson on a man-up opportunity and Chauvette off a Rawson helper to make it 5-4, but Spallina found Rhoa with 1:51 left in the half to restore a two-goal cushion at the break, 6-4.
Out of halftime, Dwan extended the advantage with a McCool-assisted strike before Hopkins' Iler pulled the Blue Jays within two again at 7-5 heading into the fourth.
The fourth quarter saw the teams trade goals in rapid succession. Spallina converted a man-up opportunity off a Thomson assist to open the period, and Rhoa quickly followed on a Spallina feed for a 9-5 advantage. Hopkins rattled off two straight from Rawson and Ayers to cut it to 9-7, but Mullen buried an unassisted goal moments later to push the lead back to three. Spallina added his fourth of the afternoon before Collison's hat-trick goal closed the scoring at 12-8.

Behind the Numbers

Rhoa's four-point performance (2G, 2A) marks his best outing of 2026.
McCool's 14 saves were his second most for the season, with six coming in the third quarter as Hopkins outshot Syracuse 15-5 in the frame.
Mullen went 11-of-20 at the faceoff dot and scooped up 10 ground balls, both game highs.
Dwan's two-goal effort in transition brings his season total to four.
With the win, Syracuse improved to 31-32-1 all-time against Johns Hopkins, dating to their first meeting in 1921. The Orange have now won three straight in the series.
The Orange went 1-for-2 on the man-up, while holding the Blue Jays to 1-for-3 on extra-man opportunities.

Up Next for Syracuse

The Orange close out their six-game road swing with a trip west, taking on Air Force on Thursday, March 12. First faceoff is set for 5 p.m. ET in Colorado Springs.
Syracuse then heads to Denver on Monday, March 16 before returning home to the JMA Wireless Dome to host Georgetown on Sunday, March 22.