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When Wake Forest’s freshman goalkeeper, Ally Butler, lost a Carly Bothof shot under her feet and proceeded to kick the ball backward and to her left, Bothof was there for the putback.

Four minutes into the final period, sophomore Charlotte de Vries found space down the right sideline and angled toward the striking circle, sliding a pass behind the Wake Forest defense and to a waiting Bothof. The freshman juggled the ball before collecting it and cutting past a defender. She fired a shot at Butler and tucked her own rebound into an open cage.

Syracuse (2-3, 2-2 Atlantic Coast) rode that fourth-quarter goal to a 2-1 victory against Wake Forest (1-4, 0-3) on Sunday’s game in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. The Demon Deacons dominated possession in the first half — outshooting the Orange 7-1 — but de Vries’ first-quarter goal was enough to keep the two teams tied until SU ultimately took over in the second half. 

For much of the match’s early stages, Wake Forest lived in Syracuse’s defensive third. On the Demon Deacons’ first penalty corner, Meike Lanckohr got a good look but lifted it high and wide of the cage. 

The sophomore didn’t make any mistakes on her second chance, though. She and teammate Eleanor Winants ran a give-and-go just outside the right wing of the circle. Lanckohr then ripped a ground ball past a diving Syd Taylor for a 1-0 Wake Forest lead in the fourth minute.

The Demon Deacons continued their attack, as Syracuse was unable to sustain possession past midfield. But on the Orange’s first successful clearance of the quarter, de Vries received the ball just beyond midfield and did the rest herself. Dancing around two defenders, she turned her right-handed stick around at the top of the striking circle and rifled a shot into the upper-right corner of the cage. 

Wake Forest continued to apply pressure on the Orange defense, winning two penalty corners in the final three minutes. The first was turned away by a sprawling Taylor, who smothered the ball beneath her stick and right glove until referees directed the Demon Deacons to disperse. 

Some controversy surrounded Wake’s third and final penalty corner of the first quarter, when a shot appeared to glance off the stick of an Orange defender, but referees ruled it off her foot. The call was upheld after a long video referral, and Wake Forest had another chance, only to be stonewalled by Taylor once again. 

Syracuse’s best scoring chance of an uneventful second period came in the waning seconds of the half, when freshman and reigning ACC Player of the Week Florine van Boetzelaer entered the striking circle with a head of steam. She was met by four Wake Forest defenders, who cleared the chance to end the half. 

The Orange came out of halftime with a newfound intensity, quickly winning the first of three penalty corners in the span of 30 seconds. All three chances resulted in one pass and a shot, all of which Wake Forest’s Anne van Hoof blocked. 

SU tried to combat this by screening van Hoof on the ensuing fourth penalty corner of the match, in the 39th minute,  but that resulted in a whistle that nullified de Vries’ second goal of the match seconds later. Through the end of the third and into the fourth quarter, Syracuse maintained that pressure.

A great chance to add insurance came four minutes after Bothof’s 49th minute goal, but a shot by Eefke van den Nieuwenhof was stopped by van Hoof once again, thwarting the last of SU’s penalty corner opportunities. In the final two minutes, the Orange dealt with Wake Forest’s final penalty corner as Taylor fisted a shot past the right side of the cage and SU’s defense cleared the ball.

The two teams play again Monday in a non-conference midday matchup before Syracuse heads home to play its first — and final — home game of the year, against Louisville.

Published on October 18, 2020 at 4:27 pm

Contact Tim: tnolan@syr.edu