The goals started piling in and not even from the players closest to the net. Not even 10 minutes had passed and North Carolina midfielder Michael Tagliaferri already fired in two.

The prior game, Cornell midfielder Clarke Petterson led the Big Red with three goals. In back-to-back games in March, Johns Hopkins midfielder Cody Radziewicz scored three times and Duke midfielder Deemer Class exploded for seven goals.

The Orange’s struggle to stop opposing midfielders has cost SU throughout the year. So Tagliaferri’s breakout first quarter was nothing new. But then Tagliaferri didn’t score again until the third quarter. And even though he scored twice more, SU’s offense already built a lead it wouldn’t give up en route to a 13-7 win.

“It clicked (against UNC), big time for us,” defensive midfielder Austin Fusco said.

A week and a half later, No. 4 seed Syracuse (8-4, 2-2 Atlantic Coast) preps to again face the No. 1 seed Tar Heels (8-5, 3-1) in the ACC tournament semifinals on Friday at 6 p.m. in Kennesaw, Georgia. And if the Orange can contain opposing midfielders, it’ll only have a better shot at winning its second consecutive conference tournament title.

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In SU’s first matchup against UNC this season, Syracuse put a short-stick midfielder on Tagliaferri and its long pole on Patrick Kelly. Only four long poles — typically three defenders and one midfielder — are allowed on the field, so the Orange had to pick who to defend with the extra 3 feet.

For much of the season, the secondary midfield option beat Syracuse. Kelly has scored more goals on the year than Tagliaferri. Yet it was Tagliaferri who took advantage of the matchup.

“I don’t know,” defensive midfielder Scott Firman said of why midfielders tend to score more than attacks against SU. “… I guess good players are going to get their points. It’s just a matter of limiting in those cases.”

With the defenders locking up opposing attacks, the battle between midfielders has often become the difference, especially in the three one-goal losses the Orange suffered. Part of it relates to starting short-stick defensive midfielder Tom Grimm missing time due to injury. But SU head coach John Desko said he expects Grimm to be back to 100 percent for the ACC semifinals.

As the season progressed, the defensive unit worked to speed up its slide. Once a defender gets beat, the player who is “hot,” the one who is expected to pick up for his teammate’s mistake, needs to get to the offensive player with the ball faster, Fusco said.

“Our defensive midfielders have taken it a little more personal because we want to make sure that we try and lock down those middies,” Fusco said. “Because we feel like our defensemen have the advantage over their attackmen.”

 

Riley Bunch | Photo Editor

 

At one point in the first matchup against the Tar Heels, Syracuse switched to a zone defense. The reasoning was to slow down UNC’s offense and force it to waste more time while trailing by several goals in the second half. It’s something the Orange practices every week and is prepared to use in any game.

But the zone is only a change of pace. The Tar Heels have two starting midfielders with at least 22 goals scored this season and with one of them likely to be matched up against a short stick, SU will have to speed up its defensive rotations and close down on UNC’s space to shoot — two things Syracuse hasn’t fully mastered this season.

“Depending on what’s working for them, they’re able to get their best shooters in certain spots,” Desko said, “and find a crack in the lining against the defense.”

And whether or not the cracks remain this weekend could determine Syracuse’s postseason fate.

Published on April 28, 2016 at 1:00 am

Contact Paul: pmschwed@syr.edu | @pschweds