The Syracuse defense was torched for 30 goals in the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament a week ago, and had one more contest to get back on track before the NCAA tournament.

The Orange didn’t have to play much defense on Saturday, but when it did Colgate’s attack barely had a chance.

“It was just pretty tough to turn around from Duke and try to figure out who Notre Dame was two days later,” senior goalie Dominic Lamolinara said, referring to the ACC tournament. “I think the communication was a lot better this week. We practiced on it and we knew who they were.”

While the Syracuse attack ran away with the game, the Orange’s defense communicated better and turned in a sturdy performance in No. 4 SU’s (11-4, 2-3 ACC) 19-6 victory over the Raiders (9-7, 4-4 Patriot) on Saturday in the Carrier Dome.

The defense as a unit now has renewed confidence as it dives into the NCAA tournament, having bounced back soundly Saturday from its two-game fallout in last weekend’s ACC tournament.

“We thought a lot of it had to do with communication, that we weren’t all on the same page for the whole thing,” SU head coach John Desko said. “The seniors did a good job of talking all week in our defensive packages. We left the middle open a couple times today, but we got better as the day went on.”

The Raiders attempted just five shots in each of the first three quarters, and by the time they got off 12 shots in the fourth, the game was well out of reach. Nine first-half turnovers by Colgate doomed the Raiders’ attack from putting up much of a fight.

Colgate junior attack Ryan Walsh came in as one of the top five goal-scorers in the Patriot League, boasting an average of nearly three points per game.

But SU defender Brandon Mullins, just as he’s done all year long against the Orange’s opposition’s top threat, was instrumental in locking him down. Mullins played Walsh physically and had plenty of help from defender Sean Young, who timed his rotations well, and senior Matt Harris, who caused three turnovers on the day.

“Matt Harris was doing a great job directing people out there,” Lamolinara said. “Sean Young was doing a great job sliding. I think we just executed the game plan.”

Between the pipes, the Orange reverted to the usual routine of starting Lamolinara before sending in Bobby Wardwell after halftime. Wardwell’s hot play had earned him the start against Notre Dame on Sunday, but he struggled in the reversed role.

SU went back to its old formula against Colgate, and the goalies combined for eight smooth saves behind a strong defensive outing.

“I think they did an awesome job all week of focusing on communication and really strapping down and getting ready for a good Colgate opponent,” SU attack Derek Maltz said, “and it showed today.”

Published on May 3, 2014 at 8:23 pm

Contact Phil: pmdabbra@syr.edu | @PhilDAbb