WLAX: After Tough Road Set, The Orange Come Home to Face Cornell

After falling to No. 1 Maryland last Saturday, the Orange came back with two close wins against Florida and Harvard to get back on track. Tonight they face New York rival Cornell, but first, here's a quick look at what happened in Gainesville and Deland, Florida:

Syracuse 14, Florida 13 (2OT)

Last Tuesday night's game was one of the most balanced games that Syracuse has played this season, as far as being back-and-forth for the majority of the game. With the game tied at two goals a-piece in the first half, the Orange went on a three-goal run by Loren Ziegler, Kelly Cross, and Taylor Gait, going up 5-2. The team went into the half up 8-7, after Florida scored five goals to Syracuse's three.

The Orange began the second half with two-straight goals to extend their lead back to three. But, the Gators responded with a four-goal run of their own, going up 11-10 for their first lead of the game. Syracuse scored two-straight goals to gain back the lead. Florida went ahead again after two more goals. It wasn't until the final two minutes of play that Syracuse would tie it up on a goal by Halle Majorana to send the game to overtime.

Both teams failed to score in the first overtime period, but Cross, who had a four-goal game for the Orange, scored in the second overtime to win the game.

Majorana had the second-best scoring game for Syracuse with three goals of her own. In goal, Kelsey Richardson had eight saves and allowed 13 goals.

For Florida, midfielder Shannon Gilroy scored four goals. Three others scored two goals a-piece, accounting for the majority of the Gators' offense. In goal, Mary-Sean Wilcox had seven saves and allowed 14 goals.

Syracuse 12, Harvard 11

Harvard got out to a 4-1 lead with 17:10 to go in the first half, before Syracuse went on a three-goal run to tie the game at four-all. The Crimson finished on a 3-1 run to end the half up 7-5.

Kailah Kempney, Taylor Poplawski, and Cross scored three-straight goals for the Orange to start things off in the second half. Cross' goal put the Orange ahead by one point. Harvard tied it up at eight with 18:24 to go in regulation. A goal by Riley Donahue over a minute of play later put Syracuse ahead for good.

Maeve McMahon scored four goals for the Crimson while Marisa Romeo and Audrey Todd each had two goals.

Nine Syracuse players got in the scoring column, with Majorana the only multi-goal scorer.

Cornell Preview

The Big Red are 5-1 this season, three of the wins coming against Ivy League opponents. Cornell comes into the game on a three-game winning streak, as well. Three players are tied with 16 goals: Catherine Ellis, Amie Dickson, and Lindsay Toppe. Dickson also leads Cornell with 22 draw controls. Between the pipes, Renee Poullott has 31 saves on 43 goals in all six games for the Big Red.