A Massachusetts forward collected a ball off a bounce and found herself alone at the top of the circle. Syracuse goalie Jess Jecko stood midway between her and the goal.

She looked up, saw Jecko that far out and hesitated.

That’s all the Syracuse defense needed moments before the end of the first half.

Midfielder Laura Hurff poked her stick below the Minutewoman’s slightly-raised stick and the ball rolled away, averting the one-on-one matchup.

It was a telling play in a game the Orange defense dominated, jumping passing lanes for interceptions and breaking up long balls meant to catch it unbalanced. SU allowed five shots in the shutout.

The Orange has shut down offenses all season. In three of its four games, Syracuse has allowed five shots or fewer. Two of those results coming against then-No. 6 Stanford and then-No. 18 Massachusetts. Syracuse’s defense has also allowed two goals this season, which relies on communication, counter-control and rotation. No. 3 Syracuse (4-0) will have its defense tested when No. 2 North Carolina (4-0) — with its high-powered offense averaging three goals per game — visits J.S. Coyne Stadium on Saturday, Sept. 12 at 1 p.m.

“The biggest thing we’re doing (to be successful on defense) is reshaping behind the ball,” said Lies Lagerweij, who plays center back. “It’s really important for counter defense. Let’s say we lose the ball, if the defense is super spread out and (the other team) get(s) on the attack, it’s easy for them if there’s too much space.”

Reshaping behind the ball, head coach Ange Bradley explained, isn’t any different than when a basketball team turns the ball over. The team still needs to hustle back on defense and reform the zone; it’s just that field hockey has more players.

Bradley wants “counter-control,” limiting odd-man rushes for other teams. Especially in the Atlantic Coast Conference, she said, where a “wide-open” style of play turns field hockey games into track meets.

That quick tempo forces reshaping defenses to adjust impromptu during games. The Orange usually starts four “backs,” defenders, Zoe Wilson said, who rely on each other for those in-game changes. Against UMass, Wilson played directly in front of Jecko in a defensive triangle.

“To keep communication easy, the person behind you controls … you,” Wilson said. “When a person plays in front of me, I control them, but then Jess Jecko would be controlling me. It’s to keep the communication easy.”

The Orange adapt in other ways by rotating its defense based upon how a team attacks.

If an opponent drives down the right sideline, a weak-side defender slides toward the middle while the middle defender slides to the help smother the attack. To cover the now-vacated right side, a midfielder drops back to prevent a long pass from exploiting the hole.

While the Orange attempts to prevent an opponent counter, the team looks for its own opportunities if it can force a turnover.

“If we’re all on the left-hand side, we could send the ball over to and up the right-hand side,” Wilson said. “We could send a defender and then drop a midfielder back. We look for the pass up.”

Despite her team’s statistical success, Bradley sees places for improvement in defensive rotations. She doesn’t see enough speed and she wants her team to take better angles when closing in on defense.

“I don’t think we’re that good at defense right now,” Bradley said.

SU back Roos Weers has been a primary beneficiary of the rotation this season, playing a large role in Syracuse’s defense as well as scoring three goals when the team pushes in counter.

The rotation and reshaping gives as it takes with opportunities on offense for the Orange and limiting those for the opposition.

“You can be switched for quite a few balls,” Weers said. “But then you get to go back. And that’s why we don’t have shots against us … We keep moving.”

Published on September 9, 2015 at 9:40 pm

Contact Sam: sjfortie@syr.edu | @Sam4TR