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UVA Lacrosse: Keys to a Virginia Victory Against No. 8 Syracuse

Aidan Baller|
Virginia Athletics

Virginia currently sits at 5-4, firmly outside of the NCAA Tournament if it started today (for the first time since 2017), and a position not many would have predicted the Hoos would be in at this point in the season. Despite the current situation, the Hoos have plenty of opportunities to prove themselves with four big games awaiting in ACC play, starting with a home battle against No. 8 Syracuse on Saturday. Here are five keys to a win over the Orange for the Cavaliers. 

Defensive Prowess Continues - Shut Down Spallina 

Syracuse has lost two games this season. In both instances, it was the other team's stifling defensive performance that frustrated the Orange. Maryland limited Cuse to only seven goals, while Harvard lost the faceoff battle 28-3 forcing the Crimson defense to make stop after defensive stop to allow them to steal victory in the JMA Wireless Dome. 

For Virginia, the defense has been the Cavaliers' strongest facet as they rank third in man-down defense and 11th in caused turnovers per game, wreaking havoc on opposing offenses. Further, with Matthew Nunes finding his footing in net, this Virginia defense can shut down any offense and will need to do so on Saturday. Joey Spallina is the quarterback of this offense and will likely draw the assignment of John Schroter, who has been terrific this season with 11 caused turnovers. 

Reclaiming the Cage: Matthew Nunes Resurges as Virginia's Starting Netminder

Besides Spallina, this Syracuse offense thrives on its rapid ball movement, presenting a challenging test for this UVA defense, which will need to do its best not to slide and allow the Orange to whip the ball around to the open guy. To do this, it starts up top with the rope unit led by Noah Chizmar and Will Erdmann. 

Earn Extra Possessions - Win the Groundball Battle 

The Orange have been groundball machines this year, averaging 36.67 a game, good for third in the nation, with Virginia sitting close behind in fifth. If Virginia wants to steal victory, dominating this facet of the game will be critical to victory. The Cavaliers still haven't fully figured out their offense yet, with Coach Lars Tiffany demanding more from his midfield as he heads into this contest. That said, giving this offense as many possessions as possible will help. 

In addition, winning the faceoff dot against Syracuse's John Mullen will be key; he currently ranks fourth in the nation in faceoff winning percentage. UVa's Anthony Ghobriel remains "day-to-day" with an injury headed into Saturday's game, so Andrew Greenspan and Henry Metz will have to pick up the slack if he's out. Harvard proved there is a way to beat Syracuse without winning at the x and getting dominated in the groundball battle, though it's a difficult path. 

Get Creative Offensively and Play with Pace

It's no secret that the Virginia offense has not been the effective product many thought it would be. Still, setbacks are bound to happen when you lose your all-time point leader, Connor Shellenberger, and the NCAA's all-time goal-scorer Payton Cormier; the key is the response. Virginia lacrosse, under Coach Tiffany, brands itself under "the race to improve" in that the teams that can improve the most between February and May will be the ones that climb to the top of the mountain, but that improvement needs to be seen now just for Virginia to get into the tournament. 

So, how does Virginia flip the script? Coach Tiffany emphasized that Virginia's offensive success moving forward lies in increased production from Virginia's midfielders of Griffin Schutz, Johnny Hackett, and Will Inderlied in addition to sharing the ball on the inside, something the Cavaliers flashed in the first half of last week's game against Utah. Virginia is currently averaging a 27.5% shooting percentage, so improved shooting would go a long way to reviving the UVa offense to steal a victory in the ACC, propelling Virginia into strong form headed into April's portion of the schedule, where the Hoos will face Notre Dame, Duke, and North Carolina before the ACC Tournament. 

Push Transition - Fire Up the Home Crowd 

Two weeks ago against Maryland, Noah Chizmar forced a turnover before George Fulton picked up the loose change and quickly fed a streaking Will Erdmann, who buried his shot in transition, inciting a roar of approval from the Klöckner crowd. 

Virginia teams thrive in transition, so embracing and utilizing the talents of Ben Wayer, Noah Chizmar, Erdmann, Wills Burt, and Hudson Hausmann to give the offense a boost with odd-man situations will allow the Virginia crowd to inject a spark into the game while bolstering Virginia's offense. 

Ben Wayer recorded four goals and one assist through the first two games of the season and has not registered a point since; letting him run and play in transition could play a huge factor in bringing this Virginia team back into contention. 

Opening faceoff for Virginia vs. Syracuse is set for 1pm on Saturday at Klöckner Stadium and the game will be streamed on ACC Network Extra.

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Aidan Baller
AIDAN BALLER

Aidan has been writing for Virginia Cavaliers On SI since January of 2023 and covers UVA football, basketball, men's soccer, and men's lacrosse. He is from New York and is currently in his fourth year at the University of Virginia, enrolled in the M.S. in Accounting program.

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