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All due respect to our ACC rivals, the showdown between the Syracuse Orange and Cornell Big Red might be the most heated of them all. Or, at the very least, one of the most storied. As Cornell has elevated itself and Syracuse had come down a tad, the two programs have found themselves battling for poll positioning and NCAA Tournament status for a few years now. That doesn't seem ready to change anytime soon.
The No. 7 Orange (6-3) travel to Ithaca to take on a No. 6 Cornell (9-1) squad coming off their first loss of the season. We're guessing they won't want to make it two in a row. Unfortunately, the Orange aren't in the mood to add another loss to their record either. Something, as they say, will just simply have to give.
Opening face-off is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. ET. Believe it or not, this top-ten showdown will not be televised (smart thinking, ESPN). Weirdly, not even Time Warner is picking it up locally. So, you're left with the radio call on 99.5 FM or via CuseTV (audio-only).
(It looks like there may be some kind of video feed via the Ivy League Network, but I can't confirm that. Plus I think you'd have to pay to watch)
Our own Jim Simmons previewed Cornell right over here...
This year Cornell sped off to a 9-0 start. They were the last undefeated team in Division-I lacrosse but couldn't hang on as they fell to Harvard on Saturday. At 9-1 the record may look better than it actually is. The Big Red's biggest win came against Virginia where they beat the Cavaliers 12-9 led by goalie Christian Knight who nabbed 15 saves in his first collegiate start. Cornell sits second behind Harvard in the Ivy League. After their game against Syracuse, the Big Red face Hofstra, Brown and Princeton.
And College Crosse had something to say about the rivalry as well...
Cornell-Hobart is a longer rivalry with a deeper ties to the region, but Syracuse-Cornell has become -- thanks to the Red's revitalization over the last 15 years or so -- the eyeballs-necessary matchup in Upstate New York. The Orange are 9-6 against the Big Red in the programs' last 15 meetings, but the series has been evenly split over the last four games between the two powerhouse schools. This game matters for regional pride and also carries national implications -- Cornell is looking to erase doubt that surrounds the team's start to their 2014 campaign while Syracuse is looking for a win to maintain its NCAA Tournament trajectory. The Red are the favorites against the Orange at Schoellkopf Field, but this rivalry often turns favorites into mush given how balanced these teams are in the overall.
Leave your pre-, in- and post-game comments below. G'ORANGE!
