Syracuse will head to Evanston, Ill., on Saturday with one thing in mind: revenge.

Revenge for the national championship game loss suffered against Northwestern last year, a heartbreaking 8-6 loss that ended a magical run through the NCAA tournament. And revenge for last year’s regular-season overtime loss in the Carrier Dome.

No. 6 SU (5-2, 1-0 Big East) faces No. 5 Northwestern (8-1, 3-0 American Lacrosse Conference) on Saturday at 1 p.m. at Lakeside Field in a rematch of last year’s national title game. The Orange will also look to stop a 10-game losing streak against Northwestern that dates back to March 2006.

“Now that we have a little bitter history with them, it’s motivational,” junior goaltender Alyssa Costantino said. “We don’t want to lose to them two times in the same year, and in the national championship game. We have a little bitterness towards them, but only in that respect. We’re looking for some revenge.”

On Monday, the team had yet to play its Wednesday game against Boston College, but the Northwestern rematch loomed in the distance. Some players said they were solely focused on BC and only mentally preparing for Northwestern — not tactically. Midfielder Katie Webster said the team always tries to take the season one game at a time, but it was hard having Northwestern at the end of the week.

“We look forward to that game every year,” junior midfielder Amy Cross said. “It’s such a huge game, especially after last year, losing to them twice. It’s definitely on our mind. We’ve just got to focus and buckle down and push each other and figure out what we need to do to run with them.”

SU’s seniors have extra motivation to defeat the Wildcats, having lost to them four times in their careers. In 2010, Northwestern, the five-time defending national champion at the time, beat the Orange at Syracuse’s Christian Brother’s Academy. The Orange led at halftime 10-7, but four straight Northwestern goals led to a 13-12 Wildcat victory.

In 2011, the last time SU traveled to Evanston, the Orange lost 16-11. The teams faced off in an intense regular-season game last year. Michelle Tumolo tied the game at nine with 51 seconds remaining in regulation, but the Orange lost 11-9 in overtime.

“Especially for our seniors that have never beaten this team,” SU head coach Gary Gait said, “they have an opportunity to beat them. (They have) two, one-goal games against them. This is our chance to really make a statement.”

This is a new year with new players involved, but both programs remain among the nation’s elite. Only two of SU’s starters from the national championship game have graduated, and the Orange recruited what Inside Lacrosse considered the No. 1 recruiting class.

Compared to last year, Syracuse enters this game with a target on its back. While it was a top-tier program last year, it wasn’t expected to play in the season’s final game. Now, the expectation is there — no one will take the Orange lightly, just as SU won’t take its opponents casually.

“You just have to respect every team you play and know they’re looking to play you and knock you down so they can move up,” Cross said. “That’s what we were doing last year. You can’t take anyone lightly.”

The influx of talent on the SU roster also helps.

“I think we’re still really strong, some of the freshmen are doing really well,” said Webster. “(But) I don’t think they realize how big this game really is.”

On Saturday, as they are welcomed to the rivalry, they’ll understand.

“We have unfinished business to do, so we just have to go out hard,” Webster said. “We have nothing to lose.”

Published on March 28, 2013 at 2:14 am

Contact Josh: jmhyber@syr.edu