SYRACUSE — A perfect first quarter on Sunday night led to a perfect season at home for the Syracuse University men's lacrosse team.
The third-seeded Orange netted the game's first eight goals — including six in the opening quarter — as SU obliterated Canisius, 20-3, before a crowd of over 3,400 fans in the first round of the NCAA Division I tournament. Syracuse (13-2) finished the year with a 9-0 mark at the Carrier Dome.
More importantly, the Orange will face No. 6 Notre Dame (14-2) in the quarterfinals Sunday in Ithaca. The Irish advanced earlier in the day following a 8-7 overtime win against Colgate. The game will be played either at noon or 2:30 p.m.
SU senior attacker Mike Leveille put up a performance worthy of a Tewaaraton Trophy finalist. The Delmar native produced four goals and two assists in just three quarters. Watertown native Kenny Nims followed with two goals and three assists for an Orange offense that couldn't be contained.
"For the seniors, obviously it was our last game in the Dome," Leveille said. "We just wanted to get up and have a big day."
The opening quarter was the only evidence anyone needed to prove that Syracuse wouldn't be stopped. The Orange owned the Golden Griffins' defense as Syracuse scored on its first three offensive possessions. Leveille, Nims and fellow area native Brendan Loftus went up the gut of the defense to tally SU's first three goals in less than five minutes.
The Orange scored its next two goals while working out of man-down situations. Greg Niewieroski , the third player in the Watertown trio, buried his first tally on a beautiful pass from Pat Perritt to put SU up 4-0. Then, Niewieroski fed freshman Josh Amidon for another goal just over a minute later to make it 5-0. Dan Hardy polished off the scoring spree with one more goal off another patient offensive set. Hardy chipped in two goals and two assists.
By the end of the first quarter, Syracuse had booked its ticket for the quarterfinal round. The Orange absolutely overwhelmed Canisius (10-6) and presented the most dominating effort by any team in the first round of the tournament.
"All week, Coach (Desko) has been pressing on us how important it is to come out early and stop any chance of momentum they could get," Nims said. "We just wanted to let them know right from the start that they weren't going to be in the game for long."
Nims set up Leveille and Steven Brooks for goals to swell the SU lead to 8-0 early in the second quarter. Canisius head coach Randy Mearns said it was difficult to neutralize the Orange's offensive weapons.
"Playing at their level is the level we want to play at," Mearns said. "Wow, they can just go on all cylinders. Pick your poison in terms of Leveille or Kenny Nims or Niewieroski and just on and on."
The Golden Griffins gradually worked their way back into the game once the Orange removed senior faceoff specialist Danny Brennan. After winning four of five draws in the opening quarter, Brennan was substituted out to rest his leg injury, and Canisius won more possessions at the "X." Senior attacker Michael Blocho scored two of the Golden Griffins' three goals to move within 9-3 at intermission.
"We were running the plays we planned on doing," Blocho said. "They just came at us and started scoring in the second half. It felt good that we came on a run, but we just let it go."
Niewieroski continued SU's trend of scoring in bunches with another goal to start the second half. He finished with two goals and one assist, and Loftus added two goals. Eleven players scored at least one goal for the Orange, which tallied 11 goals in the final 30 minutes.
Freshman goalie John Galloway led another exemplary effort from the Syracuse defense. He registered eight saves in 45 minutes of action. The Golden Griffins were held scoreless in three of four quarters.
nNOTES:Syracuse is 21-1 all-time in tournament games at home. ... Leveille extended his point-scoring streak to 54 consecutive games, which is the second-longest streak in the nation behind Duke'sMatt Danowski. ... With the Golden Griffins' loss, the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference champion is winless in seven NCAA tournament games.
WOMEN
SYRACUSE 21, TOWSON 9
Junior Katie Rowan established NCAA championship and Syracuse single-game records with eight assists and 13 points Sunday, guiding the fifth-seeded Orange (17-2) past Towson in the first round of the NCAA tournament at the Carrier Dome in Syracuse.
Syracuse hosted a first-round NCAA tourney game for the first time, advancing to the quarterfinals and a matchup with North Carolina. That game is set for 1 p.m. Saturday at the Dome.
Syracuse has won 10 games in a row.
Towson closed its season at 13-6.
