Just 30 seconds into No. 3 Syracuse’s (7-1, 1-1 Atlantic Coast) first overtime of the season, Laura Hurff curled into the shooting arc and fired low towards goal. The ball headed just wide right and Elaine Carey was inches away from deflecting it on goal. But she didn’t and the shot went wide.

“That needs to be a goal,”center back Lies Lagerweij said. “You don’t get a lot of chances in overtime. You need to value possession in overtime. You know if you hand the ball back it’s probably gonna be a shot on goal for them.”

Less than a minute later, Nicola Pluta scored for No. 16 Wake Forest (4-3, 2-0) to end the sudden-death overtime and give the Demon Deacons a 2-1 victory on Saturday afternoon at J.S. Coyne Stadium.

Syracuse had scored at least two goals in every game it played this season. The Orange was averaging 3.4 goals a game before Saturday. But its one goal output coupled with allowing its first two goals handed SU its first loss. WFU also limited SU chances to just 11 shots, the second-lowest on the season only to the season-opener against California (nine).

With just more than 21 minutes left in the second half, the Orange converted for the only time on Saturday. Jennifer Bleakney received a pass on the right wing and pivoted past her defender. A few touches brought Bleakney near the endline and she crossed from there, finding Carey for a first-time finish right in front of the net.

Late in the second half, the Orange saw one more shot come within inches of a goal. Roos Weers, who scored two goals on penalty corners in Albany on Sunday, got her chance to add to that tally. The Orange went with misdirection on its corner, inserting as if to set up Lagerweij for a shot, who then fed the ball to Weers positioned to her right. Weers wound up and let go a shot that skidded across the ground, but the left corner remained empty as Wake Forest goalkeeper Isla Bint watched it go wide.

Carolin Hoffmann got one more chance late in regulation in front of Bint, but the Wake keeper disposed of the ball and the game was destined for a sudden-death finish in overtime.

“If we finished, then we probably could’ve won,” goalkeeper Borg van der Velde said.

With just seven players (including the keeper) on each side during overtime, versus 11 each in regulation, the Orange had to sprint back after its scoring attempt went just wide.

“You got to do your job,” Syracuse head coach Ange Bradley said. “It’s called hard running.”

Lagerweij had moved to a forward position for the extra period, meaning one of SU’s best defenders had a long way to go after Syracuse almost ended the game to keep Wake Forest from ending it. WF didn’t beat the Orange down the field, but the extra space was enough to concede the game-ending chance.

In its first home conference game, Syracuse couldn’t keep its high-powered attack going on the same day that its defense finally conceded.

“All the ACC teams are so good,” Lagerweij said. “Every ACC team can beat each other, I really believe that. It’s about who wants it most and who’s most effective.”

Published on September 16, 2017 at 3:17 pm

Contact Billy: wmheyen@syr.edu | @Wheyen3