Syracuse Defeats Air Force, 20-8

March 9, 2002

The Air Force lacrosse team took a 4-2 advantage into the second quarter, but the high-powered offense of Syracuse, the No. 1-ranked team in the nation, was too much for the Falcons. The Orangemen dominated the final three quarters, winning 20-8.

The Falcons came out strong, scoring three of the first four goals in the game. Air Force (1-2) jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first quarter behind goals by Adam Gaudinski and Kyle Warf. Syracuse junior attackman Michael Springer (Ridgewood, N.J./Ridgewood) tallied an unassisted goal at the 9:53 mark which made the score 2-1. The Falcons took a 3-1 lead after Gaudinski fed Kevin Hill at the 6:48 mark. SU's sophomore sharpshooter Brian Nee (Cockeysville, Md./Boys' Latin) notched his first of three goals with 2:51 remaining in the opening quarter, but Air Force held on to its two-goal lead (4-2) when Matt Dudderan found the back of the net with 14 seconds remaining in the opening period.

In the second quarter, Syracuse (3-0) settled down and found its offensive rhythm. The Orangemen went two-for-two on the extra man situation and outscored Air Force, 6-0, for the quarter. Nee netted his second goal of the game, off an extra-man feed from senior midfielder Brian Solliday (Bethpage, N.Y./Bethpage) at the 13:54 mark. Senior attackman Josh Coffman (Carthage, N.Y./Carthage) tied the game at 4-4 off a pass from sophomore attackman Michael Powell (Carthage, N.Y./Carthage) just a 1:12 later. Freshman midfielder Kyle Olson (Columbus, Ohio/Upper Arlington) tallied his first collegiate goal at the 8:47 mark to give the Orangemen their first lead of the game, a lead they would never relinquish.

Syracuse continued its offensive onslaught in the second half, outscoring the Falcons 12-4 in the final two quarters. The win improves Syracuse's record to 3-0 on the season. Air Force falls to 1-2 overall. The game was the opening of the Pioneer Faceoff Classic. The Falcons will play Providence on Sunday (March 10) with game time at 11 a.m.

 #1 SYRACUSE 20, AIR FORCE 8Score by quarters:Syracuse 2-6-8-4=20Air Force 4-0-2-2=8
Syracuse Goals:  Brian Nee 3, Michael Powell 3, Josh Coffman 3, BrianSolliday 2, Michael Springer 1, Kyle Olson 1, Spencer Wright 1, TomHardy 1, Pat Hogan 1, Sean Lindsay 1, Jake Plunket 1, Alex Zink 1, BrettWalther 1.
Syracuse Assists:  Michael Powell 3, Brian Solliday 2, Michael  Springer2, Spencer Wright 2, Zack Wallace 2, Josh Coffman 1, John Glatzel 1.
Air Force Goals:  Kyle Warf 2, Kevin Hill 2, Adam Gaudinski 1, MattDudderan 1, Greg Dangler 1, Dave Brown 1.
Air Force Assists:  Adam Gaudinski 1, Tim Lorden 1, Greg Dangler 1.
Shots:  Syracuse 46, Air Force 22Faceoffs:  Syracuse 15/31, Air Force 16/31Saves:  Jay Pfeifer (SU) 2, Alex Mummolo (SU) 6, Bill Arnold (AF) 11,Jeff Moss (AF) 2.Groundballs:  Syracuse 40, Air Force 35Penalties:  Syracuse 7/5:30, Air Force 7/6:30Extra-Man:  Syracuse 5/7, Air Force 0/7Clears:  Syracuse 16/20, Air Force 13/23

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