Emily Hawryschuk has never spent as much time on the phone with head coach Gary Gait as she did last week. They probably talked more than the last four years combined, she said.

Friday, both Hawryschuk and goalie Asa Goldstock, who sits second in school history for overall saves, officially announced their commitment to return next spring in pursuit of Syracuse’s first national title. When Hawryschuk finalized her return, Gait called the All-American and Tewaaraton finalist one more time. 

“Hi, is this Emily Hawryschuk, member of the 2021 National Championship team?” Hawryschuk remembers Gait saying.

Heartbreaks and what-ifs

The morning of March 12, Hawryschuk and the Orange went through their usual walkthrough, preparing to play Virginia that night. Thoughts loomed in the back of players’ minds — what the media was saying about the coronavirus and the future of the sports world — but they set it all aside and focused on the task at hand. Gait pulled Goldstock and Hawryschuk aside to tell them that it would likely be their last game in a Syracuse shirt. 

In the afternoon, after the pregame preparations had concluded, the seniors and fifth-year players gathered in a hotel lobby in Virginia and talked about the future. They talked about the shock from two days prior when the Ivy League was canceled, the possibility of their season ending. It was special to have everyone together helping each other during the stressful time even if the moment itself wasn’t so special, Hawryschuk said.

Three and a half hours before the opening draw, the ACC postponed all competitions. Days later, that postponement turned into cancellation. 

Goldstock remembers sitting next to Hawryshuk and crying because of the unknown. They wondered if they would ever put on their uniforms again. 

In the coming weeks, they were comforted to learn that it was possible for them to return to Syracuse, but that didn’t erase the unsettling feeling of what could have been. 

That feeling of uncertainty is not something Goldstock and Hawryschuk are going to forget anytime soon. The two know the Orange’s schedule by heart — Team Impact Day for Maddy Hertweck was supposed to be last weekend, Boston College this weekend, and so on.

“I still think about it every day,” Goldstock said. “As excited that I am for next season, I’m still deeply saddened that we lost this opportunity.”

For so long, Goldstock and Hawryschuk have been saying that 2020 would be the year of the program’s first national championship. Now, they’re saying 2021 instead.  

The return

It wasn’t a coincidence that Goldstock and Hawryschuk announced their return on the same day. The two have known each other since middle school, and because they’ve “been doing (everything) together for the past four years,” Goldstock says, it only made sense to come back together as well. 

In the weeks leading up to the decision, Hawryschuk would call Goldstock, “freaking out” about the uncertainty, and Goldstock would calm her down. Gait and his staff helped expedite the stressful situation by working as a liaison between the school or the NCAA and the players. 

It wasn’t until this week that Goldstock and Hawryschuk knew Syracuse would be allowing spring athletes to return. The NCAA granted graduating spring athletes the option to return but allowed individual schools to decide how to implement relief. 

“For me, right away, it’s a no-brainer,” Hawryschuk said of deciding to return. 

Goldstock joked that she’s only using the extra year of eligibility because next season is 2021, which matches her No. 21 jersey. The two hope the team’s other seniors will also return because then the Orange will be “picking up where they left off,” but they understand the decision isn’t straightforward for everyone. Some players may have had internships and jobs lined up for after graduation, and family is another factor, Hawryschuk said.

Seniors Vanessa Costantino, Cara Quimby, Bella Recchion, Ella Simkins and Mary Rahal have yet to officially decide whether they will return, though Lila Nazarian expressed interest on social media.

The future

For Hawryschuk, the future is all building toward one thing — fulfilling the promise she made her team to win a national championship. Everyday, Hawryschuk and Goldstock talk on the phone about what the fall and next season will look like. 

2020 saw the Orange meet huge milestones, including the “immeasurable buy-in” that the captains received from their teammates, Goldstock said. The culture that was developed this season is one they aim to carry into next.

For now, Hawryschuk can only do her best to stick to her summer workout routine, which includes footwork, conditioning, stick-work and “a lot of time spent in her basement, which is the closest thing (she has) to a Planet Fitness,” she said. The captains’ conversations also include check-ins about their daily workouts as they already begin to prepare themselves for perhaps the most anticipated season of the sport ever.

They look forward to returning to the Carrier Dome next year, a place that Goldstock called “sacred to athletes at Syracuse.” Hawryschuk remembers turning to Goldstock, her bus-buddy, the day after the Virginia game was canceled and remarking that they would at least have another chance to play in the “greatest place ever.” 

All year, Goldstock was jealous that the junior class would get the opportunity to be the last to play in the old Dome, and the first to play in the newly renovated one. Now, Hawrsychuk and Goldstock will return to the Dome and get another shot at the championship. 

“Just winning (the title) is going to be something special,” Hawryschuk said. “But putting five years toward something is going to make it that much more special.”

Published on April 19, 2020 at 1:22 am

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