Jeremy Vuolo didn’t want to talk about it. Eight seconds passed before he answered the question of what he said to the referee, and even then he skirted around it.

‘It’s just (that) you have to be respectful. I’m just — no comment on it,’ he said.

Syracuse midfielder Geoff Lytle had been taken down by an opposing player just outside the penalty area, and the Orange looked like it would have one more chance to win the game in regulation. But the officials didn’t issue a card to the Canisius defender, and the clock ran out to end regulation.

Vuolo sprinted more than 60 yards from the Syracuse goal to the Canisius side of the field, letting the official know exactly how he felt about the decision to not stop the clock on the ensuing free kick.

One of Syracuse’s most well-composed players had lost his cool. He was frustrated. He was fed up. And perhaps he was a little embarrassed with how his team had played.

Vuolo and Syracuse (1-4-3) played Canisius (0-5-1) to a 1-1 double overtime tie Tuesday, in arguably the program’s most disappointing result since losing to Oneonta State in 2005. The winless Golden Griffins outplayed SU for nearly the entire game and made a statement to the Orange in its own stadium. Head coach Ian McIntyre and the players had come into the game expecting three points, but instead left the field with nothing but frustration.

‘At the end of the day, I think we were almost lucky to get away with a draw,’ SU midfielder Nick Roydhouse said. ‘I feel like they wanted it more than we did.’

That desire to win negated any advantage the Orange had over Canisius on paper. And there were plenty.

The Golden Griffins came into Tuesday’s game having scored just one goal on the season. They allowed more than two goals per game to their opponents. Syracuse had won all eight matches the two teams had played against one another, outscoring Canisius 46-4. In 1984, SU even routed the Golden Griffins 16-1.

After the game, Vuolo put the shocking result in perspective.

‘They’re not a quality side,’ he said. ‘They didn’t possess the ball with any quality. They didn’t deserve to keep it away from us. We kind of let them do that.’

And once again, the Orange let its opponent get on the board first. In the 25th minute, the Golden Griffins passed right around the SU defense for an impressive goal. Defender Aaron Ramos-Gonzalez made a long run out of the back and found a teammate open at the top of the box. Regan Steele then slotted it between two Syracuse defenders, and J.J. Hughes put it away.

It was the fifth time this season the Orange has conceded a first-half goal and has been forced to play from behind early in the game.

‘You saw the Canisius guys before the match, and they were very excited,’ McIntyre said. ‘I think that, ultimately, the way we approached the game and the start of the game I was disappointed with.’

The Golden Griffins saw this game as a chance to send a message. Syracuse is the only team on Canisius’ schedule from a major conference. It would be a big win for the program if it could come away with a point against a Big East school.

And that program is one whose pedigree is anything but pretty. Canisius men’s soccer has more than 2.5 times more losses than wins in its history. Ten times, it has won one or fewer games in a season.

This tie will sting for Syracuse.

‘We targeted this as a must-win game,’ Roydhouse said. ‘Walking away from here with a draw, we haven’t gained a point, we’ve dropped two.’

Once again, the only offense for the Orange came from Roydhouse. He netted his team-leading fourth goal of the season on a 30-yard free kick eight minutes before halftime.

That was all Syracuse could manage. True enough, it dominated the two overtime periods. But that’s just 20 minutes in a game that lasted 110. McIntyre still cannot get a complete performance out of his team, and eight games in, that should be a little discomforting.

‘The easy way for us right now is to point a finger at a referee (for letting the clock run out),’ he said. ‘What we can control is how we approach games and how we apply ourselves in the games.’

Vuolo acknowledged the team needs to make emotional adjustments. Instead of coming out flat and waiting for the other team’s goal to act as a wake-up call, he said the team needs ‘that little fire’ from the opening whistle.

‘We were disappointed in the effort that we were putting forth more than anything,’ Vuolo said. ‘I hate being outworked by any team.’

mjcohe02@syr.edu

Published on September 28, 2010 at 12:00 pm

Contact Michael: mjcohe02@syr.edu | @Michael_Cohen13