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With 8:30 left in double overtime, Syracuse and Rutgers were both looking for the game-winning goal as SU defender Eefke van den Nieuwenhof moved forward with the ball into the attacking third. Just a few steps into the Scarlet Knights’ zone, van den Nieuwenhof was pickpocketed by RU freshman Lucy Bannatyne. As Bannatyne moved into the shooting circle, she fired a perfect shot that went past SU goalkeeper Brooke Borzymowski and to the center of the net, giving Rutgers the victory. 

Bannatyne’s goal prevented No. 16 Syracuse (2-2) from completing its comeback against No. 8 Rutgers (4-0). Down 2-0 going into the fourth quarter, Laura Graziosi and Quirine Comans scored two goals in the final period of regulation to send the game to overtime. Through the first three quarters, the Scarlet Knights outshot the Orange 10-3 and also had four more penalty corners than SU.

The opening quarter saw Syracuse give up the most shots it had allowed in a single quarter as Rutgers had six shots against the Orange. The sixth Scarlet Knight shot of the quarter became the game’s opening goal from RU midfielder Gianna Mancini. 

Just over nine minutes into the opening period, Rutgers set itself with another corner. A soft shot from Scarlet Knight midfielder Milena Redlingshoefer rolled slowly toward Borzymowski, who kicked the ball straight away. But the lurking Mancini stopped the ball near the left side of the net and the senior chipped it just enough to bounce past all the SU defenders, giving RU a 1-0 lead.

Then on the Scarlet Knights’ first penalty corner of the second half, Redlingshoefer was set to take the shot, but Orange sophomore Florine van Boetzelaer blocked it immediately. Redlingshoefer was able to keep possession and spin away from the SU defenders, moving to the upper-right side of the shooting circle where she fired a shot that bounced up into the air toward the left side of the net. While the shot came short of the goal, Redlingshoefer’s teammate Carly Snarski dove and batted the ball into the net past the diving Borzymowski. 

The Orange were able to get two shots off in the third, but Rutgers held its shutout. But not even a minute into the fourth, the Orange were in the Scarlet Knights’ zone. As RU tried to knock the ball away from the shooting circle, Syracuse freshman Willemijn Boogert was able to regain possession for the Orange. Boogert then dumped the ball off to Graziosi, who brought the SU attack into the shooting circle. Graziosi fired a long back-handed shot into the right corner of the net, cutting Syracuse’s deficit in half.

The Orange kept up the pressure in the fourth quarter, outshooting the Scarlet Knights 6-3. Comans tapped in the first goal of her collegiate career to tie the game with under six minutes remaining in regulation. Charlotte de Vries fired a long pass across the field to Graziosi, who flanked her way down into the bottom-left side of the shooting circle. Graziosi again fired a backhand shot toward the net, and Comans was able to tie the game, sending the ranked matchup into overtime. 

The first overtime period saw the SU goalkeeper Borzymowski make two of her 11 total saves in the game. That was the most saves made by the freshman in her collegiate career. Borzymowski not only got the start over fellow freshman Louise Pert, but also played the entire game. In the first three games of the season, Syracuse had the two freshmen each play one half, but this was the first game where Pert didn’t receive any playing time. 

In the second overtime, Borzymowski again made two saves against Rutgers’ Kerrie Burns and Rachel Houston. With just over two minutes played in the period, Borzymowski was unable to stop Bannatyne from scoring as the Orange fell to their first ranked opponent of the season.

Published on September 10, 2021 at 6:20 pm

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