Lies Lagerweij locked eyes with a Stanford player and swung her stick, hitting a perfect through-ball pass across the field. As the Syracuse offense pushed into Cardinal territory, Lagerweij quickly followed behind before receiving a pass. She took a look around and decided it was better to make another pass instead of taking the shot.

That’s Lagerweij’s style of play. She makes smart decisions on the ball, ready to feed teammates or take the shot depending on her options. She’s active on both sides of the field. With that comes more duties. On a change in possession, she has to run 75 yards back the other way to set up for the counter attack.

“It’s hard because it’s a lot of running and long distance running as well,” Lagerweij said.

The versatile 6-foot-1 center back has been a main contributor to No. 1 Syracuse’s (6-0) stout defense, which has only allowed one goal per game. She’s also responsible for many goals on the offensive side, whether it be starting the play with her passing or finishing with her shot.

“It’s special,” head coach Ange Bradley said when asked about the versatility of Lagerweij. “… she’s one of the best players in the country.”

Lagerweij is leading the Orange with seven goals. The next closest player, Elaine Clarey, is at five, with the next coming in at three. Her 1.17 goals per game ranks tied for 12th in the nation.

Of her 14 shots, 12 have landed on goal. That 86 percent clip is good for second among SU players with eight or more shots.

“She’s probably one of the smartest players in the country,” Bradley said.

Lagerweij has only one assist over the first six games, but still is one of SU’s more talented passers. Many times against Stanford, she got stuck in the corner after a defensive stop and found an open player as her opponents closed in on her. The passes were hard and crisp. Her teammates were able to control the pass and push up field.

Kali Bowden | Contributing Photographer

While she helps set up teammates, her scoring has always been her strong suit. Late in the 2014 season, she moved from forward to center back. But her scoring totals have never been this high. All of last season, she totaled just three goals while being a key defender in Syracuse’s national championship run. She topped that in her third game of this season, scoring her third and fourth goals of the year.

Her scoring mentality, however, is always put aside on defense.

“I play with a lot lower risk (when on defense) because you can’t go dribble in your own defensive area,” Lagerweij said. “But, I definitely think when I cross the 25-yard line, the attacker (in) me comes up and I still have the same tendencies and I still want to get a shot off or get a corner.”

During those corners, Lagerweij lines up dead center, to the left of the setter, ready to take the shot. But, she is also willing to fake her opponents and let a player behind her take the shot, as she did multiple times throughout the SU-Stanford game.

“The changes that she’s made since the first year,” Bradley said, “and her ability to look at her team and surrender the pride that she had as being a center forward to being the best center back in the country is unbelievable.”

And once those corners end, Lagerweij hustles back to her position on the opposite side of the field. Because that’s the player she is.

Published on September 13, 2016 at 11:30 pm

Contact Charlie: csdistur@syr.edu | @charliedisturco