Two-time national champion. Career leader in goals-against average at Syracuse. A 2010 third-team Inside Lacrosse preseason All-American.

Those are all accolades that describe Syracuse men’s lacrosse goaltender John Galloway, but a strong performance from his backup, Al Cavalieri, in the NCAA playoffs threw it all into question.

Head coach John Desko stirred the pot during his team’s media day when he announced he would be open to a preseason competition between the two-year incumbent Galloway and the challenger, senior Al Cavalieri.

‘I think we’re open to that,’ Desko said when asked if the starting goalie spot was open for a challenge. ‘I don’t know if we want to rock the boat right now, but Al has done a very good job.’

On Tuesday, though, Desko relented. The coach officially cast aside any doubt and named Galloway the starter for the 2010 season.

It will be the junior’s third consecutive season in net, where he has started all 35 of the Orange’s games the past two seasons.

‘We’re going to stay with John Galloway,’ Desko said Tuesday. ‘We’re certainly comfortable with Alex (Cavalieri). … You know, John has won two national championships starting in the goal for us the last two years, so it would be difficult to oust him there.’

Desko suggested he kept the spot open because of Cavalieri’s hard work last year, which culminated in an impromptu first start against Maryland in the NCAA quarterfinals. Cavalieri led Syracuse to an 11-6 win over the Terrapins while Galloway sat with the flu.

It might be surprising for a two-time defending national champion goalie, the only goalie in NCAA history to win titles as a freshman and sophomore, to have competition. But it’s nothing new to Galloway. He has treated each year as a competition, taking very little for granted.

‘I never have assumed anything,’ Galloway said. ‘Nothing has changed the last two years. It’s been the same thing – every day of practice, every scrimmage we do, anything, I play my hardest.’

On the surface, the notion of a heated competition couldn’t be further from the truth between the two roommates, both of whom have taken extraordinarily different paths to this spot.

On one hand, there’s Galloway, who grew up to Syracuse lacrosse. He dreamed of playing here from his perch in goal at nearby high school powerhouse West Genesee.

Heralded as a recruit, he came in to perhaps more hype than anyone in recent history. Galloway became the first true freshman to start in goal since Tom Nims, father of former SU attackman Kenny Nims, did so in 1981.

And, so far, he’s backed that hype up. Beyond the two national championships, Galloway has won 31 games in two seasons, including a school-record 16 games in his freshman season. He’s also been noted as one of the best clearing goalies in the country, something that certainly has stood out to Desko.

‘I think John is who he is,’ Desko said. ‘As far as clearing the ball, when you’re a fast-breaking team like Syracuse, that becomes very important to us. I think he’s definitely head-and-shoulders above just about anybody in the country as far as that goes.’

Yet, the Orange knows it has a luxury in Cavalieri. With Galloway on the sidelines in the Orange’s quarterfinal game against Maryland, Cavalieri stopped shot after shot – 14 saves in all – as SU advanced to the final four of the tournament.

Perhaps no one knows better how important Cavalieri is to his team than his roommate.

‘With us playing a little differing styles,’ Galloway said, ‘I think we can always push each other and give each other pointers in the areas where we might need some work. In the three years we’ve been here together, I think we’ve both learned a lot of different things from each other.’

Which is why Desko feels so at ease with his goaltender situation.

With new players integrating into the system in the first few weeks of practice and key players needing to be replaced from last season at attack, midfield and defense, it’s one fewer thing he has to worry about.

‘For our coaching staff,’ Desko said, ‘it’s a very comfortable situation for us in the goal right now.’

And that same feeling goes for the rest of the team.

‘We have two great players in goal, and that’s a good thing,’ senior midfielder Joel White said. ‘Obviously, John’s won (a national championship) twice, and we’ve seen what Al can do in there, too. It’s never a bad thing when you have two guys in there like that.’

Replacing Sid

One of the tallest orders the Orange will have this season will be replacing defenseman Sid Smith, who was one of seven players on the Orange roster to start every game of the 2009 season.

The Orange allowed just 7.4 goals per game last year, a mark that ranked fourth nationally, and Smith’s stingy defense was a big part of keeping that number down.

‘You can’t replace someone like Sid,’ White said. ‘Beyond his defense, the way he talks, the way he leads the team. He’s out there just telling everyone where to go, where the ball is, what defense we’re in.’

Close defenders Matt Tierney and John Lade will return to the defense this year, and White will continue to man his long-stick position.

There is no word yet as to who might replace Smith and take over the one defensive spot up for grabs, but White thinks his team can recover rather quickly.

‘When you lose a guy like that, it’s really a huge impact on your team,’ White said. ‘But, I think all of us working together, we’re not going to be able to replace him, but find new roles for ourselves.’

bplogiur@syr.edu

Published on January 26, 2010 at 12:00 pm