Syracuse Postgame Quotes
Syracuse vs. Army
Friday, February 20, 2009
Carrier Dome/Syracuse, N.Y.
Head Coach John Desko
Opening Statement:
“It started out like a typical Army-Syracuse game. They were very stingy defensively. Their goalie played very well in the first half, and they had some good possessions. They had a couple of other opportunities that they could’ve scored on. We didn’t wait and we switched some things around in the second quarter. Fortunately we started to pull away then, and we were able to carry it on into the second half. We got some good things going, some break opportunities in the second half and we were able to pull away. I’m just happy to have that kind of game, and I’m happy for our output offensively. Defensively we gave up a couple early which I wish we hadn’t. We thought we knew what they were going to do, and were just a little out of place. It’s great to be pushed like West Point does to you, and you really have to work hard to win a game like this. All in all, I’m happy with the win and we have to get ready for next week.”
“There were a couple of adjustments within the offense. We want to get (Stephen) Keogh a little bit closer to the crease. We changed our offense because of how they were sliding. We did a similar thing last year and fortunately we were able to talk advantage of it in the second quarter.”
“We talked all week about this game. We knew the history of this game. It’s been a really close game and a game that we have to work really hard to win. They come in here every year and they’re getting pretty comfortable in the Carrier Dome, and a couple of years ago they beat us here. Kenny understood all of that and played really well, got everyone else involved in the game and made other players better. He stepped up and made some great individual plays.”
“I think the defense did a good job. We wanted to get some bottom-hand pressure on them and create some turnovers, which we did. We knew what they were going to do offensively. They didn’t do anything different but we gave up a couple early which I was disappointed with. But they settled down and John (Galloway) did a good job in the goal. We cleared the ball, which we wanted to do against a team like this, a very high percentage of the time to keep the pressure on their defense.”
On the importance of soundly defeating Army:
“The way they came out in the first quarter, it was a little bit like ‘Here we go again’. But we knew that once we started executing, our shots would drop. Our defense played well all game. It feels great to have a big win here – they always play us tough.”
“We always play tough in the second half, and sometimes we do start slow. That’s something that we need to work on, but our team does a great job of adjusting to things and we’re always able to come on strong when we need to.”
On the strength of the Syracuse offense:
“I’m just glad that I only see them in practice. I do feel bad for Army. To see those guys execute the way they did in the last couple quarters, they really did a great job of taking the pressure off for us. We made a couple of mistakes in the first quarter and let in three goals, but you don’t have to worry when you have guys like (Dan) Hardy, Nims and (Pat) Perritt coming at you for four quarters. It’s one of those comfort zones that we have when they’re going at you that hard. It was a very good offensive game and it took a lot of pressure off for the defense. I know the scoreboard didn’t show it, but (Army) has a very good offense. I think it was overshadowed by how well our offense did today.”
“Defensively we calmed down. We started communicating a little bit better. I have three great guys standing in front of me right now on close defense that really locked down after the first quarter. With the offense taking the pressure off from the second quarter on, and with guys like John (Lade), Sid (Smith), and (Matt) Tierney locking down and forcing a lot of turnovers and groundballs – it really made it a lot easier from the first quarter on.”
On the locker room message at halftime:
“People were just saying that they had their half. They had the first quarter where they got up on us. We played terribly and we were still winning 5-3. We went out in the second half with a little chip on our shoulder, and we knew that we could take the game over at any time. We were getting our shots – it was just a matter of finishing, catching, and passing, and we really took off.”
“I was kind of forcing things at the beginning, and I was getting a little frustrated. I let things come to me and took chances when they came. Then I felt more comfortable out there.”
