Orange women's lacrosse wins 2 games against Big East newcomers

Gary Gait respects the women's lacrosse competition in the Big East. But once his team wrapped up its weekend games against Louisville and Cincinnati, the Syracuse head coach didn't hesitate to acknowledge his program's superior standing in the conference.

"The Big East does a great job of demanding excellence from their schools," Gait said, "and I know our conference will continue to gain experience and grow. Both (Louisville and Cincinnati) are young and athletic but a little inexperienced, and we took advantage of that."

The Orange crushed both the Cardinals, 15-4, and the Bearcats, 23-7, this weekend, expanding its winning streak against Big East opponents to 12 games. It was both programs' first season playing in the conference and against Syracuse in the Carrier Dome.

Louisville immediately learned how the Orange developed into the two-time reigning Big East champion. Katie Rowan, Christina Dove, Halley Quillinan and Megan Mosenson weaved through the Cardinals' defenders, and each netted a score in the first five minutes of the game.

By halftime, the Orange had already posted double-digit goals and possessed a comfortable 10-3 lead. After a few more second-half scores, Gait emptied his entire bench and allowed the reserves to close out the match. Backup goalkeeper Brooke Conley also had the chance to give starting goalkeeper Liz Hogan a rare breather.

"I think it was great to get in there and get the job done as soon as we could so we could get the younger girls in there so they can get some touches on the ball, shots and some confidence," Dove said.

It would only be the beginning of an action-packed weekend for the Orange reserves. SU carried the momentum from Friday's thrashing of Louisville into Sunday's matchup against Cincinnati.

Dove spearheaded the Orange's scoring barrage, firing the first of her game-high four goals only 49 seconds into the match. Her second goal, however, was the focal point of the postgame discussion.

The score, which came five minutes after her first goal, propelled Dove to the 200-point plateau. She became the third SU player to achieve the milestone, joining former Orange standout Leigh-Ann Zimmer and senior attack Katie Rowan as the only players on the list.

"It's a tremendous honor," Dove said. "But I try to play for the whole team so we can score as many goals as we can and outscore the other team. We try to get everyone involved."

That wish eventually came true. Dove's production opened up opportunities for other role players to get involved. Eleven different players finished the game with at least one goal. But no goal was more impressive than that of senior attack Awehiyo Thomas.

With three minutes left in the first half, Rowan fired a pass towards Thomas, who was cutting toward the middle of the goal, which freed her up for a one-on-one showdown against Bearcat goalkeeper Katherine Russo.

Facing Russo from an angle, Thomas twirled her stick around her head and rifled a behind-the-head shot past the goalkeeper, eliciting cheers from her teammates and showing flashes of Gait's influence on her game.

"We see it a lot at practice, and we were excited she did it in the game," Rowan said. "But we weren't surprised to see it from her. I think we see it a lot at practice, she has really great stick skills and can do all those things."

Thomas' goal apparently ignited a spark within the team, because the Orange scored three goals in the ensuing 47 seconds. Going into halftime, both Dove and Rowan had already tallied hat tricks.

At that point, Gait felt enough was enough. Five minutes into the second half, he yanked out most of his starters in favor of his reserves. Despite the change, the Orange continued its scoring spree, recording eight goals in the second half.

"It was a good weekend for us, to be at home, back in the Dome, and to play a couple of Big East games," Gait said. "I thought our team played pretty well over the weekend, and then to move on and get everyone in both games was awesome. It was a nice job, good execution and a fun weekend of lacrosse for us."

dsmorais@syr.edu