Princeton University Athletics
Syracuse Tops Princeton In Men's Lacross 14-8
March 24, 2001 | Men's Lacrosse
March 24, 2001
Syracuse, N.Y. - It was snowing with a biting wind outside the Carrier Dome in Syracuse Saturday afternoon. For the Princeton men's lacrosse team, it might have been worth braving the elements.
Stepping inside the Dome meant facing a Syracuse team that had lost last week at home to Johns Hopkins. Considering the fact that the Orangemen have lost consecutive games in the Dome only twice since it opened in 1981, this didn't figure to be the easiest task Princeton would ever face. As it turned out, it wasn't.
Syracuse defeated Princeton 14-8, handing the Tigers their first loss of the season in four games and in all likelihood knocking them out of the No. 1 spot in the national rankings. The game was a rematch of last year's NCAA championship game, which Syracuse won 13-7. In fact the Orangemen have beaten the Orange and Black four straight times.
Princeton is at Rutgers Tuesday night before beginning Ivy League play at Yale next Saturday. Syracuse (4-1) improved to 123-11 all-time in the Carrier Dome.
Syracuse led 3-0 after eight minutes, 4-1 after one quarter and 6-1 in the second quarter. Princeton cut it to 6-3 at intermission and 6-4 early in the third quarter, but Syracuse erupted for five straight goals to build an 11-4 lead. Syracuse outshot Princeton 20-4 in the third quarter alone.
Josh Coffman and freshman Mike Powell -- the younger brother of former national players of the year Casey and Ryan -- each had three goals and one assist for Syracuse.
Princeton was led by Sean Hartofilis with two goals, while Matt Bailer, Ryan Boyle, Owen Daly, Brad Dumont, Ryan Mollet and B.J. Prager each scored one goal. Matt Striebel had two assists for the Tigers.
NOTES -- Princeton is now 4-6 against Syracuse since 1992, with its four wins by a combined total of five goals and its six losses by a combined total of 36 goals ... Princeton is 24-1 against all other teams and 0-4 against Syracuse in its last 29 games ... Princeton has allowed 13 or more goals in a game eight times in its last 119 games, five of those eight times it was Syracuse who scored at least 13 ... Prager's goal extended his streak of consecutive games with at least one to 23 ... Hartofilis is the only Princeton player with at least one goal in every game this year (Prager missed one due to injury) ... Striebel, Hartofilis and Boyle are the only three Princeton players with at least one point in all four games ... Syracuse outshot Princeton 45-31 and had a 37-25 edge in ground balls ... Syracuse won 14 face-offs, Princeton won 10 ... Attendance for the game was 10,924.