Five, four, three, two, one.

When any Syracuse player turns the ball over, the internal clock starts to count down for how long they have to regain possession.

“It’s really critical, those first five seconds,” senior midfielder Laura Hurff said. “Someone gets the ball from you and their head’s probably not up.”

The instant back pressure No. 7 Syracuse (10-3, 2-3 Atlantic Coast) deploys on opponents after a turnover is called back tackling. It requires little skill, maximum effort and is a “non-negotiable,” Hurff said. Back tackling will be crucial when No. 4 Virginia (11-2, 3-1 ACC) comes to J.S. Coyne Stadium Saturday, as SU will attempt to slow down UVA’s potent offense, which averages more than five goals a game.

“Your work’s not really done,” Hurff said, “even if you lose the ball.”

If a player loses possession, she immediately turns and guards the opposing player who forced the turnover. She attacks for possession until a turnover is forced or, when back tackling fails, the player passes off.

One of the most important things about back tackling, junior forward Jennifer Bleakney said, is instantly recognizing a turnover and in that moment switching from offense to defense.

“We always say, there is no skill in back tackling.” Bleakney said, “… The will to get the ball back is all you need.”

When forward Elaine Carey turns it over, she angles to be in the hip pocket of whoever she is trying to dispossess, making it hard for any offensive maneuvering. Speedier players like Bleakney and Hurff race back between the opponent and goal before attacking the ball carrier head-on to win possession.

Although back tackling rarely is required from defenders, because more turnovers occur on the offensive end, All-Americans Lies Lagerweij and Roos Weers use their size to cut off a potential free rush at goalie Borg van der Velde. Lagerweij and Weers are two of the tallest players on the team at 6-foot-1 and 5-foot-10, respectively.

How SU gets the ball back, head coach Ange Bradley said, is unimportant. That it gets it back is what she cares about.

“When you lose the ball,” Bradley said, “do you want to work for it to get it back?”

Virginia features back-to-back national player of the year Tara Vittese. Both Vittese and teammate Pien Dicke average more than one goal a game and have a combined 39 goals on the season. SU has just 35 goals as a team.

To help stop the Cavaliers from pressuring the Orange, back tackling will be critical. Successful back tackling keeps the ball forward and allows SU to maintain its attack.

“Once you lose the ball,” senior midfielder Erin Gillingham said, “you just have to sprint your butt back to get what you lost.”

Published on October 12, 2017 at 12:01 am

Contact Andrew: aegraham@syr.edu | @A_E_Graham