UVa Falls Short at Syracuse in Early-Season Battle for No. 1

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SYRACUSE, N.Y. – An intense matchup between the No. 1 Virginia Cavaliers (4-1) and the No. 1 Syracuse Orange (3-0) saw the home team taking the contest on Friday night, in front of 14,340 fans, inside the

Carrier Dome. The setback snapped UVa’s three-game winning streak inside the edifice. UVa and Syracuse were both ranked this week No. 1 by the USILA coaches poll, while the Cavaliers sat No. 2 in the Nike/Inside Lacrosse media poll. It was only the second time in the history of the historic poll that two teams shared the top spot. The final regular season poll in 1985 saw Johns Hopkins and the Orange share the No. 1 spot. The USILA poll began in 1973.

The loss was also UVa’s first true road loss since falling at Duke, 15-10, on April 11, 2009.

Shamel Bratton put UVa on the board first, 1-0, with 12:44 left in the opening period on an unassisted score from 10-yards out.

The Orange scored twice in 1:14 of play, taking a 2-1 advantage with scores from Tim Desko and Steve Ianzito. Mark Cockerton tied the game, 2-2, via a Colin Briggs pass with 8:46 left in the first quarter.

Syracuse jumped out front by three goals, 5-2, when Jovan Miller capped a run with 2:55 left in the first quarter. JoJo Marasco’s goal extended Syracuse’s lead to 7-4 with 11:57 left in the second quarter, finishing the Orange’s scoring for the first half.

Virginia scored four-straight goals to go into the intermission with an 8-7 lead. Steele Stanwick scored on a Rhamel Bratton pass to start things. Unassisted goals by Shamel Bratton and Colin Briggs tied the game at 7-7 with 4:26 left in the first half. A Chris Bocklet from Stanwick connection with 2:53 left in the second quarter capped the scoring for the half.

Syracuse scored early in the third quarter, taking the lead, while posting the 3-1 advantage over the frame, giving the Orange a 10-9 lead entering the final quarter. Goals by Stephen Keogh, Desko and Jeremy Thompson gave the Orange the lead. Thompson and Desko scored again in the fourth, preserving the Syracuse advantage. Shamel Bratton scored his fourth goal, eighth career in the Dome, but it wasn’t enough as UVa fell in the juggernaut of a game, 12-10.

Virginia goalie Adam Ghitelman made 15 saves in the goal, including many point-blank stops, keeping UVa in the contest until the final horn. Stanwick added three points and Bocklet scored twice in the loss. Chris LaPierre shined at the faceoff, winning 7-of-8 and picking up six ground balls, mostly during faceoffs.

The Orange were led by Desko’s five scores and Thompson’s two assists and two scores.

UVa returns to action on Tuesday when Vermont comes to Klöckner Stadium. Faceoff is slated for 7 p.m.

Virginia 4-4-1-1-10
Syracuse 6-1-3-2-12
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Scoring (G-A) -V: Shamel Bratton 4-0, Steele Stanwick 1-2, Chris Bocklet 2-0, Rhamel Bratton 0-2, Colin Briggs 1-1, Rob Emery 1-0, Mark Cockerton 1-0. SU: Tim Desko 5-0, Jeremy Thompson 1-2, Stephen Keogh 2-0, Josh Amidon 1-1, Jojo Marasco 1-1, Jovan Miller 1-1, Steve Ianzito 1-0.

Goalie Summary – V: Adam Ghitelman 57:59 mins., 15 saves, 12 goals allowed; Rob Fortunato 2:01 mins., 0 saves, 0 goals allowed SU: John Galloway 60:00 mins., 9 saves, 10 goals allowed.

Shots: V-38, SU-42
Ground Balls: V-25, SU-26
Clearing: V-23×26, SU-22×25
Faceoffs: V-10, SU-13
Penalties: V-11-10:00, SU-5-4:30
EMO: V-1×3, SU-0x8