Staats shines for lackluster Syracuse offense in return from injury
Logan Reidsma | Staff Phtographer
SU attack Randy Staats dodges toward the net i Syracuse's 21-7 loss to Duke on Sunday. Saats netted two highlight-reel goals in a poor all-around performance by the Orange.
DURHAM, N.C. — If there were any questions about Randy Staats’ health, he answered them pretty soundly Sunday.
“I thought he had flashes,” Syracuse head coach John Desko said. “I think he did as well as anyone we had out there offensively.”
It wasn’t a pretty day for the Orange (4-3, 0-3 Atlantic Coast) during its 21-7 blowout loss to Duke (8-2, 2-1) at Koskinen Stadium on Sunday, but Staats was the Orange’s sole takeaway. The junior attack netted a pair of slick goals and dished out an assist in his return to action after missing two games with a leg injury.
Syracuse spent more time watching Duke’s offense than it would have liked — as the Blue Devils controlled the faceoff X — but Staats managed to be SU’s biggest standout in a game attack Kevin Rice called a “collective team loss.”
“I was off the past two games and this game here helped me get back in the groove,” Staats said.
Staats didn’t start, but saw the field early in the game. It wasn’t until the second quarter, however, that the playmaking ability he showcased before his injury caught everyone’s attention once again.
Dodging from the right wing halfway through the quarter, Staats reached the doorstep and flicked a crafty backhanded shot past Duke goalkeeper Luke Aaron, snapping a 10-0 Duke run.
“He’s a great player. That’s what we expect from him,” Rice said.
At the end of the first half, Staats hit a cutting Billy Ward across the middle for the Orange’s fourth goal of the game.
With less than three minutes remaining in the third quarter, Staats again exercised his creativity inside the box. SU midfielder Scott Loy hit him with a pass and Staats fired a quick shot into the back of the net inside the right post.
Despite missing Syracuse’s meetings with St. John’s and Johns Hopkins, Staats still ranks as the team’s No. 3 scorer and has 16 points on the season.
As the Orange tries to learn how to win games without consistency at the X, Staats may soon rejoin the first-line attack as a potentially crucial piece to that puzzle.
Said Staats: “I felt good out there and we’ve just got to move on now.”
Published on March 23, 2014 at 6:50 pm
Contact Phil: pmdabbra@syr.edu | @PhilDAbb
