After defeating Georgetown on Sunday in the second round of the NCAA tournament, No. 5-seed Syracuse (16-4, 5-2 Atlantic Coast) will take on the No. 4-seed Northwestern (15-4, 5-1 Big Ten) Wildcats in the quarterfinals in Evanston, Illinois, at 2 p.m. on Saturday. SU handled the Hoyas with relative ease last round, led by Emily Hawryschuk’s five goals and two assists. The Wildcats scored the first eight goals of their game against Notre Dame on Sunday and ultimately won, 13-10, in their second-round contest.

Here’s what to know before Saturday’s matchup.

All-time series: Northwestern leads, 13-5

Last time they played: In one of Syracuse’s most exciting games this season, the Orange took a 12-9 lead against Northwestern in the second half of their game on Feb. 24. The Wildcats went on to score five consecutive goals to take a 14-12 lead, but SU finished the game on a 3-0 run — sending the game into overtime and eventually winning, 15-14. Hawryschuk scored four goals, including the game-winner, and tied Nicole Levy for the team lead with five points.

The Northwestern report: The Wildcats have one of the best offenses in the country, ranking second in both scoring offense and shot percentage. They also rank fifth in draw controls per game, points per game and shots per game. Their high-scoring offense is led by Tewaaraton Award finalist Selena Lasota, who’s sixth in the country in goals (79) and second in shots per game with 8.89. Northwestern’s defense hasn’t been so strong, though, allowing nearly 13 goals a game — 73rd in the nation — while its save percentage ranks just 52nd.

NU is one of the hottest teams in the country and comes into Saturday’s game riding a six-game winning streak. Five of the wins were over ranked opponents, including a 16-11 victory over No. 1-seed Maryland on May 5 in the Big Ten Championship. Aside from its loss to Syracuse, Northwestern’s three other defeats have come at the hands of the Terrapins, No. 2-seed Boston College and No. 3-seed North Carolina.

How Syracuse beats Northwestern: Win the majority of draw controls and slow down the Wildcats’ offense. In their first matchup, Northwestern dominated the Orange in the circle and won 20 of 31 draw controls, but SU’s offense bailed it out. NU’s success this season has been thanks to sophomore midfielder Brennan Dwyer, whose 8.53 draw controls per game rank fifth in the country. Syracuse will need its draw control rotation of Hawryschuk, Braelie Kempney and Morgan Widner that had success versus the Hoyas to continue it in its matchup with the Wildcats.

Aside from Lasota, Northwestern also features Big Ten freshman of the year and Wildcats’ second-leading scorer Izzy Scane. To beat Northwestern, Syracuse will need to slow the duo down. That means strong performances by Orange standouts Grace Fahey, Sarah Cooper and Kerry Defliese, who combined for five caused turnovers and nine ground balls versus Georgetown. SU may opt to face-guard Lasota just as Northwestern did with Hawryschuk in their first matchup, in which case Fahey would likely draw the responsibilities.

Stat to know: 20

Both the number of turnovers and draw controls the Wildcats notched in their loss to Syracuse earlier this season. Twenty turnovers is the second-most the Wildcats committed in a game this season, and if they are just as sloppy on Saturday, they’ll likely fall to the Orange again. Meanwhile, 20 draw controls is also the second-most an SU opponent has won this year. The draw control circle and Northwestern’s offense will decide the game, and repeat performances of either stat could determine who reaches the final four.

Player to watch: Selena Lasota, attack, No. 2

The Big Ten attacker of the year, Lasota has scored four or more goals in her last seven games and 10 of her last 12. On March 14 against Rutgers, Lasota tied a program-record with nine goals, second-most in a game by a player this season. She’s the lifeblood of the Wildcats’ offense, and is playing at the top of her game right now. But the Orange have stopped her before — they held her to just two goals and one assist in their first meeting, including four shots that tied her season-low.

Published on May 17, 2019 at 11:31 am

Contact Eric: erblack@syr.edu | @esblack34