Jordan Evans’ role had changed. The attack, who for most of his career was always looking to score, had to adjust. So as the season’s progressed he became more of a facilitator, passing rather than trying to create his own shot.

But on Tuesday night in Syracuse’s 15-8 win over Cornell, he became more than that. Evans used his body and dodged more. He created open looks for himself. Other times, he took a step back and worked the ball around the offense, looking for the best opportunity to score.

Top-ranked Syracuse (9-1, 3-0 Atlantic Coast) used a 10-0 run to pull away after trailing early. Evans scored all three of his goals in that stretch, proving himself instrumental in the win over Cornell (3-7, 2-2 Ivy), 15-8, on Tuesday night inside the Carrier Dome. Then win marks SU’s best 10-game start to a season since 2011. Evans finished the game with his first multi-goal performance since Feb. 25 and added a pair of assists to Nate Solomon.

“He’s got great vision,” Solomon said, “and knows where everyone would be in the offense.”

Evans played more comfortable than he had in the previous six games. He was held goalless two separate times and never had more than two points in a game. Oftentimes, other options would lead the way for SU. Nick Mariano took the bulk of the shots or Brendan Bomberry used his body to create offense in front of the goal. Even unlikely names like Jamie Trimboli or Matt Lane broke out to guide the Orange in its stretch of seven one-goal games.

But on Tuesday, he had the vision that was shown in the season opener against Siena and then again two weeks later versus Army. He knew when to make the pass and when to dodge and shoot

In all but two games this year — Siena and Cornell — Evans has shot the ball four times or less. On Tuesday night, Evans’ physicality created more open looks. He tied the game up at four by running against his defender and using his speed and body to gain enough space to shoot and score with ease.

“(Evans) attacked his matchup,” Cornell head coach Matt Kerwick said. “… The key with them is you can’t chase stick and you can’t expect to put the ball on the ground against their offense.”

Other times, he knew the when the defense would slide and found himself running off-ball into open space. Senior midfielder Sergio Salcido charged toward the net and, as defenders collapsed on him, found Evans waiting next to the net. He caught the pass, ran in front of the net and scored.

His facilitating didn’t falter, either. After a Cornell shot hit off the post and bounced 60 yards in the opposite direction, Evans ran at the sideline. He missed the rebound, but was the closest player to the ball. Catching the defense off-guard, he quickly scooped the ball and threw a 20-yard pass in front of the net toward Solomon. The sophomore attack scored the third of 10 straight Syracuse goals.

“The attack in general, but especially Jordan,” SU head coach John Desko said, “thought they understood who Cornell was and how they liked to slide.”

And while everyone did play well, it was Evans who was the main threat against Cornell. When attention shifted to Syracuse’s other threats, Evans wasn’t hesitant. He rose to occasion, ran the offense and became the player he was once expected to be.

Published on April 11, 2017 at 11:06 pm

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