The sloppiness was evident. The mental focus wasn’t there. Syracuse escaped with a win at Rutgers on Sunday, but the little things were an issue for the Orange.

“I think it was (us) just being a little bit careless with the ball,” Syracuse attack Michelle Tumolo said. “That’s one thing we just talked about — we need to limit our turnovers because that’s just unacceptable.

“The little things, dropping the ball out of bounds or just throwing the ball away, we don’t usually do that, so hopefully, that was a one-time thing.”

In its recent four-game road trip, the No. 6 Orange (7-3, 3-0 Big East) was unusually careless with the ball. The experienced facilitators of SU’s offense, Tumolo and junior attack Alyssa Murray, committed an uncharacteristic amount of turnovers. On Sunday, the attacks combined for seven of Syracuse’s 19 turnovers, which was SU’s third worst total this season.

With five games in the Carrier Dome in the next week and a half — starting with Louisville (8-4, 0-3) on Friday at 6 p.m. and Cincinnati (6-5, 0-3) on Sunday at 1 p.m. — Syracuse will need to improve its ball security against two of the tougher teams in the Orange’s schedule.

UofL is coming off of a weekend during which the Cardinals forced a total of 34 takeaways in their two games. Louisville ranks third in the Big East and 12th nationally, forcing 10 turnovers per game. Syracuse, by comparison, ranks fifth in the conference with an average of 8.2.

Cincinnati isn’t an easy draw, either. The Bearcats are tied for fourth in the league in total turnovers caused.

“I’m always concerned with our turnovers,” SU head coach Gary Gait said. “I think the Rutgers game was one of those games where you have a mental lapse. Twelve turnovers in the first half, you can keep anybody in the game if you’re going to do that.”

The giveaways were simple errors, Gait said. They were results of poor catching and throwing, inadequate footwork and an overall lack of focus. But the Orange took a deep breath, limited the second-half turnovers to seven and came away with the victory.

“We made sure the passes we were throwing were 100 percent going to be a connection and hopefully a goal or a quality shot, rather than just winging it and taking a risk,” Murray said.

As two of the Orange’s most prolific scorers, Tumolo and Murray need the ball in their possession to be difference-makers on the field. But that reason is partially why they’ve turned the ball over as often as they have, Murray said. Tumolo leads the team with 26 turnovers. Murray is tied for second with 17.

If a teammate mishandles a pass from Murray, the turnover would be attributed to Murray’s stat sheet. Because of that, Murray said she doesn’t believe the stat is a true reflection of how she and Tumolo take care of the ball.

But the attacks admitted their miscues from Sunday’s game. Tumolo accepted responsibility for a pass that Rutgers goalie Lily Kalata intercepted. Murray took account for her three turnovers and playing “badly.”

RU’s defense collapsed well, Murray said, and at times made Syracuse’s offense uncomfortable, leading to giveaways. But Tumolo said the Orange’s mistakes weren’t because of the Scarlet Knights’ pressure.

“I think it was us, honestly. They did force some caused turnovers, but all in all, it was us and our decision-making,” Tumolo said. “I think we need to value the ball a lot more.”

Louisville’s defense, Murray said, is one that looks to force turnovers by applying heavy pressure on its opponents. But it’s a tactic that fatigues the Cardinals, she said.

By refining the little things, like emphasizing passes that are shorter and crisper, Gait said, Syracuse needs a more intense drive than it displayed against Rutgers.

“I think it was a little bit of a wake-up call for them and I think a point where they realize they got to be focused every game,” Gait said. “Doesn’t matter who we’re playing. So hopefully, we’ll see a different attitude going into this next game against Louisville.”

Published on April 11, 2013 at 12:39 am

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