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Coming off a heartbreaking penalty shootout loss to then-No. 4 Virginia, No. 12 Syracuse bounced back with a dominant 7-2 win over Bucknell. It was just the second time all season that SU tallied at least five goals and won a game by more than four goals.

During the first period, Syracuse created multiple big chances, but failed to convert. Just two minutes into the second period, the Orange broke through. Vivian Rowan forced her way inside the arc for the first penalty-corner opportunity for either school. Willemijn Boogert inserted the ball and Bo van Kempen did what she does best. Van Kempen ripped a shot past Bucknell goalie Sarah Althouse for the 1-0 lead. The strike was van Kempen’s 13th goal of the year.

Less than six minutes later, an identical opportunity presented itself. Aiden Drabick used nifty dribbling skills to get by multiple defenders and set up the Orange for another scoring chance. Although she couldn’t finish during the play, van Kempen’s number was called upon once again after another penalty corner was awarded to SU. This time, Lieke Leeggangers got the play rolling, and van Kempen again slapped one by Althouse to make it 2-0.

In the final minutes of the first half, Boogert was able to manufacture her own offense. The ball found its way to the inner circle and was loose. Boogert was first to it, finishing her shot to increase SU’s lead to three.

Coming out of the half, the Orange kept their foot on the gas. Just over a minute into the third quarter, Rowan somehow split the gap between the defender and the goalie coming out of the net. The ball got through traffic to the other end of the goal to an open Lana Hamilton. As Althouse was out of position, Hamilton redirected the ball into the net for SU’s fourth goal.

Bucknell got on the board just 33 seconds into the fourth quarter, but Syracuse was quick to respond. Hamilton corralled the ball in the air, spun away from the defender and shot the ball by the Bison defense for an insurance goal three minutes later.

Syracuse would go on to add two more goals in the fourth quarter. The first one was by Boogert. After her initial shot was blocked, it bounced right back to Boogert, who slapped home the rebound.

The seventh and final goal was scored by Rowan, who put the icing on the cake with just four minutes remaining.

Published on October 24, 2024 at 9:52 pm