SU men’s lacrosse opens with 12-7 win over Albany
SYRACUSE — Eighth-ranked Syracuse University scored 10 consecutive goals and cruised to a 12-7 victory against Albany in the season opener for both teams on Sunday at the Carrier Dome.
Eight of the Orange’s 12 goals came from the midfield, including all eight in the first half.
Junior midfielder JoJo Marasco led Syracuse with four points, including three goals and matched his career high with three first-half goals. Redshirt junior Ryan Barber and sophomore Derek Maltz each tallied a career-best two goals. Senior Tommy Palasek added three assists.
After surrendering the game’s first two goals, Syracuse held the Great Danes scoreless for 40:44 while the offense took control of the game.
Albany’s Ty Thompson and Joe Resetarits gave the Great Danes the lead midway through the first quarter with consecutive man-up goals after a two-minute, non-releasable penalty was assessed to redshirt junior David Hamlin. But that was all the offense the visitors mustered until the fourth quarter. The Orange led 8-2 at the half and 10-2 in the fourth before a Lyle Thompson goal with 11:21 to play ended the Albany drought.
Redshirt freshman Hakeem Lecky started the Orange scoring spree, notching he first goal of his career at the 5:35 mark of the first quarter. Three goals by Marasco, two by Barber, two by Maltz and one each by former Albany middie Luke Cometti and sophomore Scott Loy followed and just like that the Orange had an eight-goal cushion.
After Lyle Thompson’s goal stopped the Orange run, the Great Danes tallied three of the game’s next four goals to get within five, 11-6, with 4:45 left, but that’s as close as the visitors got.
Redshirt sophomore Matthew Lerman made his first start in the cage for Syracuse. Lerman played the first half and hadd six saves to earn the first win of his career. Sophomore Dominic Lamolinara relieved Lerman in the second half and totaled a career-best 10 saves.
For Albany, Resetarits and Ty Thompson combined for six of the team’s seven goals.
