Dom Madonna stood near the 35-yard line and looked downfield. Syracuse had taken possession in triple overtime and Madonna attempted to clear. He fired a full-field pass to a darting Ryan Simmons.

A week after being blown out by then-No.4 Albany inside the Carrier Dome, No. 16 Syracuse (2-1) was able to complete a five-goal comeback and down No. 9 Army (3-1), 11-10, in triple overtime. The game started much like SU’s 15-3 loss to the Great Danes, with Army taking a 6-1 lead into the second half and holding the Orange scoreless for nearly 25 minutes after its first goal. Despite its struggles at the faceoff X, Syracuse broke out in the third quarter and used that momentum to come back and force overtime before Simmons put the game away.

Here are three takeaways from Syracuse’s comeback.

Comeback kids

Last year, Syracuse came from behind often. It even did against Army, only to fall on a last-second goal from David Symmes. For the first time this season, Syracuse found itself in a very similar situation.

In double overtime and man-down, Symmes wound up and fired. He had ended the game last year in the Dome and was poised to do so again. But goalie Dom Madonna made the save and Syracuse took possession. He had made three different point-blank stops, saving the game for the Orange.

But Syracuse’s next possession resulted in a turnover, and Army rushed down the field in transition. Army defensive middie Anthony George darted toward the cage and fired, but the shot was wide. The next play, the ball sprung loose and triple overtime was forced.

Then, Danny Varello, who had struggled mightily at the faceoff X, won the faceoff. The ball bounced into Syracuse’s defensive zone before Grant Murphy picked it up. A pass ended up in the stick of Madonna, who slowly walked upfield. Then, he found Simmons.

Slow start

After scoring the first goal six minutes in, Syracuse failed to create any offense the rest of the first half. For the most part, the offense rarely ever had possession. The Orange won two faceoffs and turned the ball over seven times.

Despite the defense’s success — holding Army to one first-quarter goal and six total on 17 shots, forcing seven turnovers — clearing the ball also became a problem. The Orange finished the second quarter with a 50 percent success rate.

Syracuse’s slow start was eerily similar to its offensive performance against Albany last Saturday: just one goal and little possession time.

Into high gear

Not even one minute into the second half, Syracuse had its first offensive opportunity. It was man-up and Stephen Rehfuss was wide open in front of the cage. But the pass from Brendan Bomberry wasn’t fielded cleanly, and the ball trickled on the ground. Syracuse maintained possession and Jamie Trimboli took the ball at the top of the field.

He dodged down the middle alley and quickly changed his hands, firing before being hit by the Army defense. It was the first of six goals for Syracuse as part of a third-quarter run that pulled the game within just two and erased all worries of another weak offensive performance.

Syracuse had struggled to gain offensive possession — and while it still lost in the faceoff battle often — it had just two turnovers as compared to seven in the first half. The Orange also piled on 12 shots in that frame, more than the entire first half combined.

Smarter possession resulted in a third quarter that allowed for Syracuse to claw its way back. That momentum would carry into the fourth quarter and overtimes.

Published on February 24, 2018 at 4:48 pm

Contact Charlie: csdistur@syr.edu | @charliedisturco