Syracuse walked off the field in silence. One by one the players filed into their meeting space behind the bleachers at J.S. Coyne Stadium. As Lies Lagerweij crossed the field at the end of the line, Wake Forest took a picture on the field. Every Demon Deacon pumped its first in the air.

“They were a good team,” goalkeeper Borg van der Velde said. “But we could’ve won.”

The last time No. 16 Wake Forest (4-3, 2-0 Atlantic Coast Conference) entered Syracuse, it knocked off the reigning national champions in the first round of the ACC Tournament. This Saturday, coming off a win against then-No. 4 North Carolina, the Demon Deacons snapped the country’s longest active shutout streak en route to a 2-1 overtime win against No. 3 Syracuse (7-1, 1-1 Atlantic Coast). The Orange hadn’t given up a goal in the first 541 minutes of play this season.

In the opening minutes, SU pressured its opponent heavily. For every Wake Forest pass, an Orange defender blocked its path. The game appeared to be the same as the Orange’s first seven wins this season, with the opponent overmatched and overwhelmed.

But Wake Forest quickly settled in. The first half proved to be a defensive stalemate and the Demon Deacons held SU to just two shots, the Orange’s lowest first-half total this season. Wake Forest added two shots of its own, marking the first time an opponent matched SU’s total in the first half.

“It was a matter of who would break open who,” Syracuse head coach Ange Bradley said. “They were more clinical today.”

At the onset of the second half, the physicality remained but opportunities appeared. Both sides earned penalty corners in the first five minutes, and within the first 12, Syracuse had more shots than it did in the first half.

After 48 minutes of action, the Orange finally broke through. Lagerweij rifled a pass down the right sideline for Jennifer Bleakney who wove through the defense and paced her way inside the arc. After a quick nutmeg, she slid a cross for Elaine Carey. Diving out in front, Carey lifted the ball past Wake Forest goalkeeper Isla Bint and into the right corner.

The way SU’s defense had played this season and through the first half on Saturday, the lone goal seemed to be enough for the Orange. But Wake responded within three minutes.

Jule Grasshof received a pass in front of SU’s arc. She rolled right and tried to race by Roos Weers who flung the ball out of bounds. When Grasshoff began the play again, she faked left and fooled Weers, sending the ball between her legs. As van der Velde charged toward Grasshoff, she lifted the ball over the diving goalkeeper and into the back of the cage. Syracuse’s shutout streak ended with 18:16 left in the second half of its eighth game.

“They were very effective,” Weers said. “Any team can beat anyone and today they beat us.”

As the whistle sounded to end regulation, the country’s best defense had to make an adjustment. Bradley switched the offense around for the ensuing 7-on-7 overtime period with Lagerweij playing forward instead of back.

Lagerweij threaded passes to the rest of the offense, drawing the defense’s attention and opening up the field. Forty five seconds in, she advanced a ball to Laura Hurff with Carey darting into the arc. Hurff launched a pass for Carey, just outside of the cage, but Carey couldn’t get there in time.

And the move cost SU. On Wake Forest’s next possession, the Orange couldn’t command its focal point, stopping Third-Team All-American Nicola Pluta. The sophomore who tied the ACC lead in goals last year (17), matched up against Weers.

“We knew she has a good backhand shot,” van der Velde said.

Pluta faked right and rolled left with Weers pushing her toward her backhand. Pluta swung back and rifled the ball. The ball echoed off the back of SU’s cage, ending the game and handing Syracuse its first loss of the year.

“You can’t leave a player like that,” Bradley said. “She’s going to finish.”

Published on September 16, 2017 at 3:12 pm

Contact Matt: mdliberm@syr.edu