Asa Goldstock threw her hands up as a pair of Boston College players embraced near her. Goldstock jogged toward a referee wondering if they saw it too — a couple of Burgundy jerseys running toward the goalie before the whistle.

The ref looked her off. Goldstock tilted her head, trying to see if the screen would show an angle that could help plead her case.

“It was pretty evident on the field that happened,” Goldstock said, “and in a close game, that’s an easy call.”

Goldstock had barely moved off Sheila Rietano’s free position goal. The Eagles were now up 12-10, all the momentum they needed to pull away. So before she would allow two more goals in the waning minutes, Goldstock kicked the air in her goal’s netting: the space where Boston College torched her and completed its five-goal comeback.

No. 11 Syracuse (2-1, 0-1 Atlantic Coast) opened its matchup against No. 1 Boston College (2-0, 1-0) exhibiting a dominant offense that looked reminiscent of its first two tune-up wins of the season. But the Orange’s hope at dethroning the best team in the nation slowly faded in the 14-12 loss. The shifty play of goalkeeper Lauren Daly, coupled with a rejuvenated BC offense, turned SU’s 7-2 lead to an early second half deficit, one Syracuse could never recover from.

“I give our team a lot of credit for fighting and not giving up,” SU head coach Gary Gait said. “I think for an early season game against the No. 1 team in the country, we did OK.”

Gait’s goal this season, to become a “power-four team that competes for championships,” would have to run through the Orange’s offense. Against Connecticut, SU opened its season with eight goals in the first eight minutes while draw control guided it to a 18-6 blowout. And despite the lack of scoring runs like in their first game, the Orange posted goal-after-goal on Binghamton this Monday to total 33 scores in their first two games.

SU’s offensive superiority was against less superior opponents. But on Saturday, it would carry into the first 15 minutes against BC. Syracuse combated the Eagles’ fast-paced, error-prone offense by dipping into the shot clock and slowing its pace.

Boston College clobbered attackers 10 yards in front of its net, so SU operated via handoffs far from the goal or in the Syracuse end zone. When the Eagles saw Nicole Levy shuffling in the back, they poked at her stick, knocking the ball away twice in one possession. Each time, Levy recovered the ball.

Three defenders rotated around the senior as she jogged back-and-forth looking for a crease. Eventually, the right edge opened. Levy tiptoed the endline and slung an over-the-shoulder shot that snuck past Daly to make it 2-1.

Off a 5-1 draw advantage early, the Orange regained possession and stayed in their offensive motions. It kept BC’s nets shaking — Emily Hawryschuk with a player-up opportunity, a pair of successful free positions. Quickly, SU was up five goals to the nation’s top team.

“We took advantage of our opportunities,” Gait said. “Draw controls and stops on defensive end allowed us to get out to that 7-2 lead.”

That was the peak of Syracuse’s success. It lost six-straight draws and when it did gain possession, the offense couldn’t make it past midfield without turning the ball over. Last year’s Tewaaraton winner, Sam Apuzzo, broke out of early double teams and jump-started a BC offense that ended the half with three unanswered goals.

“They sent (Apuzzo) behind, and we didn’t communicate that,” Goldstock said. “That was a dagger for us.”

And it carried over into the next 30 minutes. The Eagles first three possessions were all goals, two of them off handoffs. SU’s defense centered around Apuzzo, and when she was held, someone in Burgundy was left open. The SU lead vanished, and Boston College led 9-8.

BC’s defense adjustments slowed the pace and forced Syracuse to take early shots, most that were off target. But when SU did get position up close, Daly posted nine second half saves. BC’s offensive shift had extended to a 9-to-1 scoring run midway through the second half.

“It’s a lot of pressure on us (to get goals) especially with where the score was,” Hawryschuk said.

Back-to-back goals from Hawryschuk represented the lone offensive life for the Orange. After a timeout, SU had possession down just a goal, 11-10. Sam Swart was given a free position opportunity and missed. Levy recovered, and went back to Swart. Wide. Hawryschuk rebounded the ball, and had a clear shot, but Daly reacted in time.

After Goldstock was beaten by Rietano with under five minutes left, Syracuse allowed BC to rattle off three-straight goals and push the lead to four.

Gait wandered the sidelines, now SU down 14-10 and two minutes left, with his head down. He had tried everything. Yelling at his players while they held the ball. Pointing out discrepancies in every timeout. But, by then, there was nothing he could do anymore. Syracuse’s opportunity to unmake Boston College didn’t come to fruition. They couldn’t finish the way they started.

Published on February 16, 2019 at 2:18 pm

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