Twenty-four hours and 30 minutes after they were originally supposed to play, Rutgers and Syracuse finally squared off in the first Big East field hockey game of the year Saturday night.

While the remnants of Hurricane Isabel originally postponed the game, it was a lack of officials that caused it to start 30 minutes late, at 7:30 p.m.

Still, the delay wasn’t long enough for the Orangewomen. They came out flat in a 1-0 loss to the Scarlet Knights.

Continuing a season-long trend, Syracuse (3-4, 0-1 Big East) struggled early as Rutgers (4-4, 1-0) dictated play for most of the first half. But unlike the rest of the homestand – when the Orangewomen managed to win primarily through their second-half play – it was Rutgers that controlled the early part of the second half, leading to the game’s lone goal.

‘We weren’t ready to play,’ Syracuse coach Kathleen Parker said. ‘Rutgers outplayed us in the first half and the first 15 minutes of the second half. They had better passing, they received the ball better and we didn’t put any pressure on them at all until it was time to pressure or die.’

Just five minutes into the final half, RU senior Jennifer Noon registered her team-leading fourth goal of the season off a penalty corner. RU back Megan Cech started the corner with a feed to forward Colleen Maniere, who stopped the ball for Noon at the top of the circle. Noon then fired it directly on cage past SU goalkeeper Betsy Wagner.

Both teams came into the game on opposite streaks, with Rutgers trying to stop its three-game losing streak and Syracuse hoping to conclude its four-game homestand with a perfect record.

But only one team was ready from the start.

‘We’ve been looking forward to this game since preseason,’ Scarlet Knights coach Liz Tchou said after winning her first Big East conference game as a coach. ‘All we’ve been talking about is this game.’

As time in the second half dwindled, Syracuse’s pressure increased. Still, it was unable to find the cage.

The Orangewomen registered eight of their nine penalty corners in the final 21 minutes of action. On each occasion, though, the initial shot was blocked or went wide. On a rebound, the Rutgers defense cleaned it up.

‘We weren’t taking in the loose balls,’ Parker said. ‘We were getting shots and the shots were being put on cage, which is all you really ask. That’s the first thing you ask of your corner hitters is to keep the ball in play and make the goalie play it, and we did. But we weren’t there to get any loose balls.’

Syracuse’s best chance to tie the game came in the final three minutes. After taking a timeout with 2:48 to set up their offense, the Orangewomen forced three scoring opportunities.

On one shot, Brittany Carriero beat Rutgers goalkeeper Meris Burton only to have her shot knocked away by a Scarlet Knight defender.

What still concerns Parker more than rebounding is how SU has been starting games. It’s going to be an even bigger concern as Syracuse travels to face No. 8 Penn State on Tuesday afternoon.

‘We’re going to have to change some personnel maybe,’ Parker said. ‘Maybe start out with a little more pressure right away, and we just have to work harder.’

Published on September 21, 2003 at 12:00 pm