HAMILTON, N.Y. – The entire Colgate bench swarmed the field in a tidal wave. They hurled helmets and sticks into the air and raced to their cage to meet in a massive mosh pit.

Syracuse players dotted the field in still-frame – complete shock – as the white and maroon jerseys flew by, triumphant after the Red Raiders’ 12-11 win.

A wild season finale between No. 2 Syracuse and No. 15 Colgate boiled down to exactly what was haunting Syracuse all day – faceoffs. SU frantically sliced a four-goal, fourth quarter deficit to one. And with 28 seconds left, the Orange won a draw for only the eighth time in 25 tries. Too little, too late. Kenny Nims’ doorstep tap-in was stuffed by Colgate goalie Tim Harrington at the final horn and Colgate officially ended Syracuse’s 10-game winning streak in front of 4,572 fans at Andy Kerr Stadium.

Syracuse (12-2) couldn’t overcome the Danny Brennan Effect. His value became painfully obvious.

SU’s Brennan, the nation’s leading faceoff man, sat out with a pulled leg muscle he suffered last week against Massachusetts. Rather than risk further injury, SU head coach John Desko sat the senior, yet said afterward he’s ‘optimistic’ Brennan will be available next week, when SU plays its opener in the NCAA tournament. The Orange will probably be the three-seed in the 16-team field, which will be announced on ESPNU tomorrow at 9 p.m. Colgate (11-5) punched its tourney ticket last week after winning the Patriot League.

‘Strictly from getting offensive possessions, not having Danny was a huge factor,’ said Carrozza, who started in place of Brennan at the X. ‘Having Danny is a big necessity.’

Without Brennan, the Orange was a completely different team.

Momentum didn’t stick. On four occasions, Colgate won the faceoff and scored a goal less than one minute after a Syracuse goal. None was bigger than Brandon Corp’s 40th goal this season with 1:30 remaining, which came 32 seconds after a goal by SU’s Matt Abbott. Corp’s tally proved to be the game-winner.

The Raiders owned the middle of the field. Colgate scavenged 10 more ground balls than Syracuse, 34-24. Colgate’s Matt Lalli was often the beneficiary, totaling seven points and breaking the school’s career assist record.

And frustration mounted.

An irritated Desko chewed out midfielder Steven Brooks for whipping an ill-advised man-up shot high in the first quarter – one of many erratic SU shots from far out. Defenseman Sean McGonigle slammed his stick at the garbage can on the sideline after a Colgate goal in the second. A livid Evan Brady tomahawked his stick into the turf in the third quarter following a third-quarter goal that put the Raiders ahead, 9-5.

As the team’s trotted off the field to the tune of ‘overrated’ chants from the Colgate fans, Carrozza, traded words with the supporters, needing an assistant coach to calm him down.

In short, Syracuse entered a buzzsaw Saturday without Brennan. Syracuse gave up 10 goals for the first time since beating Johns Hopkins eight games ago, and Colgate has now beaten SU in two straight seasons for the first time in 44 years.

Colgate senior Chris Eck (62 percent, fifth in the nation) dominated Brennan’s replacement, Carrozza, who weighs 31 pounds less than Brennan. Eck mauled Carrozza, winning 12 of the duo’s 17 draws.

‘Hats off to him’ said Carrozza, who has faced Eck in summer lacrosse games. ‘We definitely struggled against him today. We tried different options, and nothing worked.’

Syracuse’s Plan B, junior Jake Moulton, lost his only two draws against Eck, while emergency fill-in Jovan Miller won 3-of-6 draws. Miller’s wins helped Syracuse score three consecutive goals in the fourth to get back into it. Miller even won the faceoff after a late Greg Niewieroski goal, but Nims’ potential-equalizer was stoned.

All Desko could ask for was his faceoff men to create scrums and have wingers fly in for the ground ball.

‘We just tried to jam up the ball at the faceoff and turn it into a loose ball situation,’ said Desko. ‘I thought their wing guys did a terrific job coming in for the loose balls. But we were kind of hesitating on it. I was disappointed we didn’t just go right after it.’

‘They came out hard and found the ground ball,’ SU middie Steven Brooks said.

There’s an outside chance Syracuse and Colgate could meet in a rematch at the Carrier Dome in the first round, but it’s difficult to draw any conclusions right now. Last season, Cornell was the top team in the nation, yet drew the four-seed. Anything’s possible.

For now, Desko and his team aren’t panicking. The mood wasn’t overly somber afterward. While it is a bad time to play so sloppy, Saturday’s clunker could prove to be a much-needed wake-up call.

Said Nims: ‘Next week is when it really counts.’

thdunne@syr.edu

Published on May 3, 2008 at 12:00 pm