Syracuse speedster Pat Perritt sprinted down the field in the third quarter, trying to use his quickness to obtain an open shot on goal, when a defender slashed at him with his stick from behind. The defender’s stick slapped the back of Perritt’s thigh and the midfielder immediately started limping.

Perritt slowed up and passed the ball to a teammate. But the pain Perritt felt in his leg wasn’t enough to take him out of the play. He took a moment to recover. Then he dashed back into the ruckus, received a pass and took a Hobart defender one-on-one. Perritt spun around the defender and hurled the shot by the Statesmen’s goalie.

Perritt showed in that one sequence he had another weapon to complement his quickness – toughness.

‘I’m not going to intimidate guys with my size,’ said Perritt, who is listed at a generous 5-foot-10. ‘So maybe I try to intimidate them with my hustle and I just try to play as hard as I can and see where it will bring me.’

Perritt scored a hat trick in the Orange’s 13-11 victory over Hobart on Saturday. Perritt displayed a combination of speed and resilience to lead the Syracuse offense.

With last year’s disappointing loss to Hobart fresh on the team’s mind, the early outlook looked foreboding when Hobart’s star Nick Currie scored the first goal of the game, just 30 seconds into the first quarter.

But Perritt helped the Orange respond swiftly by using his quick feet. He raced passed the defense and sent in the first goal of the 2007 SU lacrosse season.

He duplicated the feat with a fancy behind-the-back shot at the beginning of the second quarter. Both goals were unassisted – Perritt created the open shots with his feet.

‘Pat is very exciting,’ SU head coach John Desko said. ‘His motor is going 100 miles an hour all the time. And he really hustles for us and when he gets off to a good start I think his confidence just builds and builds as the game goes on. And he can create a lot of offense for us.’

The key to Perritt’s offensive production appeared to lie in his constant hustle and the gritty perseverance more than simply his speed.

Perritt admits his emotional style plays a large role in his game. He was Syracuse’s most valuable freshman last season, when he scored 17 goals for the Orange. This season it seems the speedy sophomore has enough experience to lead the Syracuse midfield.

Throughout the game Perritt could be seen directing his teammates on the field. Perritt exercised his agility to maneuver through the defense. At times when he found himself open, Perritt would start calling for the ball, even jumping up and down as he tried to capture the attention of a teammate.

‘I just like watching him to see what he’s going to do next,’ attackman Dan Hardy said. ‘He’s such a flamboyant character out there, high-stepping, behind the back. It’s just fun to watch him because he can beat anybody.’

Near the end of the game Perritt was involved in crucial moments as Syracuse needed a comeback to top Hobart. After Hardy tied the game at 11, Perritt scooped up the ensuing faceoff. He fired off a quick shot that missed, but with Hobart’s defensemen out of position, junior Mike Leveille picked up the rebound and tossed in the game-winner.

After Syracuse extended its lead to two goals, Perritt had the ball with just over a minute left. Perritt attempted to rush around Hobart defenseman Matthew Ranaghan, but as he scurried by Ranaghan’s stick caught Perritt hard under the neck.

Perritt tumbled to the ground. Seconds later, Perritt was back on his feet again, pumping his hands in the air and yelling enthusiastically, knowing the holding penalty he had drawn would seal the game for Syracuse.

‘This was a big (win),’ Perritt said. ‘We’ve been preparing for this since we got here and to have it is really what we needed.

‘I just really didn’t want the guys to get down, cause we were making mistakes and it seemed like the crowd got out of it. They were as frustrated as we were. And I really didn’t want the crowd to get out of it or our team to put our heads down and think we don’t have chance to win this game.’

Published on February 18, 2007 at 12:00 pm