Not even a full day removed from Syracuse’s one-goal loss to Johns Hopkins that ended the Orange’s 2015 season, Sergio Salcido was forced to shift his focus. He had to make the most of his final meeting with SU’s coaches before spending the summer at his Florida home.

Still grappling with the NCAA tournament quarterfinals loss, the then-second-line midfielder knew he could start in 2016 with SU’s entire first-line midfield graduating.

“Obviously you’re upset,” Salcido said, “… but you’re also kind of motivated knowing, ‘Just because they beat us doesn’t mean business is done.’”

Salcido prepared a list of questions: What do I need to work on? How do I turn my weaknesses into strengths? Do I have a solid understanding of the offense and defense?

After an offseason spent responding to his coaches’ answers, Salcido is already maximizing his starting midfield spot by scoring his first three career goals in No. 3 Syracuse’s (2-0) two games. His dodging ability is more refined than ever and his shiftiness has helped open up SU’s offense.

Salcido served as a scout-team player and a second-line midfielder the past two seasons, respectively, and his steady progression has earned him time on the top unit. Filling in on defense and on the face-off wings was just a way to get on the field, he said, but now, his offensive prowess is what’s keeping him there.

“(I) just put in all of the extra work to put all the pieces of the puzzle together,” Salcido said, “and help me transform into a bigger contributor here as much as point production goes.”

Growing up in Winter Park, Florida, Salcido’s teams never played with defensive midfielders. Everyone played both ways, molding him for the multifaceted role he settled into early in his SU career.

As his college career has unfolded, though, Salcido has developed as a more polished offensive player based around his speed. He went from being a raw, diverse player to one that plays offense almost exclusively.

 

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Junior attack Jordan Evans said he’s one of Syracuse’s best dodgers. He just hasn’t been able to prove it in games.

“I think teams will find out this year, which is good for us that he’s gone so underrated up to this point,” Evans said. “But he’s definitely going to make some plays that people will be surprised at.”

While working on the scout team two years ago, the 5-foot-7 Salcido mimicked shifty attacks like Notre Dame’s Matt Kavanagh and North Carolina’s Joey Sankey. It’s that same speed that has given him an edge when taking on defenders one-on-one.

So far this season, all three of Salcido’s goals have come on Dylan Donahue assists. The first-line midfielder has already taken eight shots, two-thirds of the way to the 12 he took last year. Against Albany on Sunday, Salcido repeatedly dodged down the left alley and drew a rotation simply by burning the defender in front of him.

“(Salcido) kind of shakes and bakes him and (the defender’s) not quite sure which way he’s going to go,” Syracuse head coach John Desko said.

Over the summer, Salcido ate six or seven meals each day to make sure he didn’t lose weight while working out in the hot Florida weather. He wants to evolve into a complete offensive weapon and it starts with his dodging.

By forcing the slide, Salcido brings another dimension to SU’s offense. Either defenses have to suck in to avoid getting beat or slide earlier, opening up teammates for passes.

But no matter what the defense does, Salcido is taking advantage of the chance presented to him nine months ago.

“He’s an excellent athlete. He has great speed, he has a great first step, he’s shooting the ball on the run with both hands, understanding the offense,” Desko said, “and that’s the reason you see him starting right now.”

Published on February 22, 2016 at 10:03 pm

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