No. 5 Syracuse men’s lacrosse rolls over Binghamton, 17-4

No Nick Mellen, no problem. The No. 5 Syracuse Orange men’s lacrosse team scored in the opening rwo minutes, and never trailed in a 17-4 win over Binghamton on Saturday.

Even without the All-American defender, the Orange allowed only 21 shots, playing their style of game from start to finish. A pair of hat tricks from Brendan Curry and Griffin Cook fueled an offensive showcase for the Orange featuring four players scoring multiple times.

SU dominated each quarter, as 11 players scored goals for the Orange, tied for second-most dating back to 2018. The Orange offense got a boost from their trio of faceoff artists, who combined for a win on 21 of 25 opportunities. Setup by superb play in the facoff department, the Orange played the majority of the game in Binghamton territory, controlling the ball for nearly 70% of game time.

Defending ACC player of the week Chase Scanlan had the following to say after the game: “This was a good win for us, everyone played selflessly and did their job.” Scanlan pushed his goals streak to 19 straight games, good for third longest active streak in the ACC. Other players such as Tucker Dordevic, David Lipka and Andrew Kim tallied their first goals of the season, joining the scoring barrage.

While the offense was clicking on all cylinders, the defense held up their end of the bargain as well. In the absence of Mellen, Nick Depietro and Grant Murphy both had multiple deflections and clears. The defense played cohesively without their captain, showing poise and the ability to make critical stops and set their offense up for success.

While the team posted a dominant performance all around, the win did come with a price. Late in the game, the Orange lost two pieces of their attack to injury. Senior midfielder Peter Dearth walked gingerly to the locker room after sustaining a lower body injury in a collision. Also, Jacob Buttermore walked off the field after hitting his leg hard on the ground. Buttermore was able to walk off on his own volition, but neither have an update on the severity, per head coach John Desko.

Overall, the win is a building block towards the team’s goal of hoisting a championship trophy, and is something to celebrate. The team now has eight days to prepare, before squaring off with undefeated No. 13 Army next Sunday.