Notre Dame Falls To Syracuse 10-6
The Notre Dame Fighting Irish suffered a 10-6 loss to the Syracuse Orange on Saturday afternoon at the Carrier Dome. The Irish scored only two goals in the second half and struggled on offense without the services of an injured Brendan Gleason.
Nate Solomon had two goals and two assists for the Orange who won their 900th game as a program. Brendan Bomberry and Jamie Trimboli also added two goals apiece as the Orange improved to 5-3 on the season. The Irish fell to 5-3 on the season with the loss. Brian Willetts scored two goals for Irish as he was the only source of consistent offense in the game.
Solomon gave the Orange a four-goal cushion with his second goal of the afternoon with just 7:05 remaining in the game. The Irish continued to have opportunities especially in close but couldn’t capitalize as they went nearly the entire half with just one goal scored. Willetts finally stopped the bleeding with only 2:27 to play and the Irish down 9-6.
Trimboli then iced it with his second of the day with over a minute to go.
The Irish went zero for eight on the man advantage which was a big reason for their lack of offense.
The Irish opened the half down a goal, but that didn’t last long as Willetts tied the game at five just 1:25 into the second half. Mikey Wynne then drew a penalty, and the Irish went on the man up for the third time in the game. The advantage went by the wayside, and the Orange took over the possession.
Solomon scored for the Orange midway through the third quarter to give them a 6-5 lead. It was Solomon’s ninth goal of the season. The Orange upped the lead to 7-5 with under a minute left in the quarter on a goal by Stephen Rehfuss. The Orange maintained the two-goal lead at the end of the quarter.
The Orange picked up their second three-goal lead of the game early in the fourth quarter on a goal by Tucker Dordevic. The Irish went on yet another man advantage about midway through the fourth quarter but yet again couldn’t capitalize despite a couple of good chances.
The Irish had 11 unforced turnovers in the game as they struggled to get into a rhythm all game.
The Irish won the opening face-off, but Dom Madonna made a big save in close on Pierre Byrne to keep the game scoreless in the early going. After a turnover at midfield, the Orange took advantage and scored to take a 1-0 lead with 9:06 to go in the first quarter. The goal went to Bomberry, his 14th of the season.
The Orange extended the lead to 2-0 on a goal by Trimboli just 1:14 later. Pat Carlin added to the onslaught with a screened shot for his 3rd goal of the season for an early 3-0 lead. Mikey Drake finally got the Irish on the scoreboard with a wraparound goal with just 3:37 left in the first quarter.
An unbelievable end to end one-man rush by Drew Schantz resulted in a goal for the Irish right at the end of the first to cut the Orange lead to 3-2.
The Irish tied the game about four minutes into the second quarter on Bryan Costabile’s 17th goal of the year. The Irish went on the man advantage about midway through the quarter but were unable to capitalize, keeping the game tied. After a bad turnover by the Irish, Bradley Voigt made them pay and gave the Orange the lead with 5:19 to go in the first half.
Brendan Collins tied the game up at four about a minute later for the Irish who refused to go quietly. Bomberry scored his second goal of the game with about two minutes remaining in the half to give the Orange the lead again. The Irish went on another man advantage with under a minute left in the half but couldn’t capitalize. The Orange went into the locker room with a 5-4 lead.
Player of the Game: Solomon. The junior totaled four points in the game and came up with a couple of big plays in the second half to keep the Orange in control.
Unsung Hero: Madonna. The Orange goalie was a huge factor in the win, coming up with some key saves down the stretch to preserve the game.
Up Next: The Irish come back home next Saturday to take on the fifth-ranked Duke Blue Devils at 4 P.M.
