Bradley Voigt was mobbed by his teammates. The junior attack hunched over and roared, relishing in what he had just done.

It was the second quarter, the scoreboard knotted at three and SU’s rapid passing had led to a Nate Solomon blast that Notre Dame goalie Matt Schmidt snared. Schmidt attempted a clear, but Voigt charged the net and leaped, knocking the ball down behind him. A UND crowd that had just cheered a big save now held its breath. Voigt scooped up the ball, hesitated and shot. With Schmidt helpless, the SU crowd roared.

SU head coach John Desko had a goal for his offense entering the matchup of top-ranked Atlantic Coast teams: Reach double-digit goals. The 20-year head coach called the Fighting Irish’s defense a program staple, and the Orange’s diversified offense needed to step up. It did, and No. 10 Syracuse (5-3, 3-0 ACC) upset No. 7 Notre Dame (5-3, 1-1), 10-6, in the Carrier Dome for its second-straight win against a defense that usually holds its opponents to nine goals or less.

“They pride themselves on their defense,” Solomon said, “but I think we watched film all this week and saw how they slid to certain players. When we dodge hard, I think the looks were there.”

The Orange had eight different point getters, with Solomon, Brendan Bomberry and Jamie Trimboli each contributing two scores. Syracuse’s offense stayed consistent, never ending up on the wrong side of a quarter’s score total. The unit complimented Dom Madonna and a stout SU defense in the program’s 900th victory, a mark only one other school (Johns Hopkins, 977) has reached.

Both attacks spent the first six minutes trading good scoring chances and bad shots. UND’s Mikey Wynne stood behind the cage and noticed an open cutter. Wynne skied a pass to midfield, over his teammate’s head and to the stick of Solomon. Sprinting through the middle of the Fighting Irish defense, the junior slung a pass to Brendan Bomberry, who finished it with ease. The ‘0’ underneath Syracuse on the scoreboard flickered and turned into a ‘1.’

About a minute later, Trimboli used a double-screen and his speed to gain a step on his man and finish a low shot to double SU’s lead. Forty-nine seconds after that, Pat Carlin dodged in the right alley and went top-shelf past Schmidt. The Syracuse bench moshed and the Orange had a 3-0 lead.

“They’ve got a number of guys who can play,” UND head coach Kevin Corrigan said. “… There were just too many missed plays on our part.”

The chances wouldn’t have come if not for faceoff specialist Danny Varello winning two of the first three battles at the X. His stability, something he has lacked at times this season, gave SU the chances it hasn’t had much of.

Each defense clamped down in the second quarter, causing turnovers and limiting each side to two scores. Out of the break, UND picked up the intensity but was stalled by Madonna, who seemingly stopped every shot he faced.

On the other end, the pressure now on the Fighting Irish, Syracuse capitalized on its transition chances. Solomon attributed a large part of the offense’s success to a defense that limited a hapless UND attack. Notre Dame tied the game at three, four and five goals apiece before Solomon slipped past two defenders and finished from the top of the key.

Syracuse continued its groove in the fourth, as a one-handed Tucker Dordevic strike showed the offense at its best. The lead expanded to three and then four as the Fighting Irish defenders stared at each other. A roaring crowd of orange alerted them that preventing a historic win was futile.

“That’s a stingy defense that Notre Dame has,” Desko said. “We hoped that we could get to double figures and hold them to under. Not too many teams have gotten to double figures on them.”

With just over a minute left in the game, the final result not in doubt, Stephen Rehfuss lofted a pass to Trimboli. Trimboli looked as if he were content with holding the ball and watching the seconds tick off before he ripped his stick and shot high. The ball whizzed past Schmidt and UND fans trekked toward the exit.

Trimboli’s score was Syracuse’s 10th and final strike, completing the pregame objective. He turned to SU bench and wagged a finger, like he knew that the Orange now stand alone atop the ACC standings.

Published on March 31, 2018 at 8:55 pm

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