Syracuse attack Riley Donahue settled her right foot on the left hash of the 8-meter arc for a free position. Her stick sat in her hands with the head to her left as she twirled it. Four Florida defenders all stared at her.

But they should have been staring at SU midfielder Kelly Cross.

Cross sat alone on the right hash of the 8-meter arc. When the referee blew the whistle, Donahue sent a high pass to Cross, who slid the ball between UF’s goalie and the post. A grin spread on Cross’ face and teammates hugged her to celebrate the goal.

The game-winning goal with just over two minutes left in overtime cemented a 14-13, comeback win for No. 5 SU (6-2, 1-1 Atlantic Coast) over No. 6 Florida (6-2) on Tuesday night in Gainesville, Florida. The Orange rode the final eight minutes of the game to snap its two-game losing streak. Cross tallied a career-high five points for SU, scoring four goals and dishing one assist on a night when UF held Kayla Treanor to no shots and one assist.

SU had to overcome a 10-minute game of keep-away by Florida. Gator midfielder Nicole Graziano scored with just over 12 minutes left in regulation to give UF a 13-12 lead. After the Gators won the ensuing draw, they held the ball for 10 minutes.

SU was given two yellow cards for fouls committed by Brenna Rainone and Haley McDonnell.

With just under two minutes left, a Florida turnover behind the net found was picked up by SU goalie Kelsey Richardson and head coach Gary Gait called a timeout.

Attack Halle Majorana took advantage on the other end, splitting two UF defenders, shooting while falling and bouncing in a goal. Her teammates circled around her as she got up to celebrate the game-tying goal.

SU managed to prevent the Gators from scoring a goal during overtime and Cross’ goal finished off the comeback.

The Orange continues its three-game road trip on Saturday against Harvard at 7 p.m. in Deland, Florida.

Compiled by Chris Libonati, staff writer, [email protected]

Published on March 10, 2015 at 11:17 pm