Preview: Terps prepare for top five road game vs. Syracuse

The Terps pulled off a statement win last weekend beating tenth-ranked Loyola 11-4. This weekend however, will be an even tougher task. The Terps will head up to the JMA Wireless Dome (previously the Carrier Dome) where they will take on the Syracuse Orange in what many in the lacrosse world are calling the game of the week.  The Orange are coming off a 16-3 win over the Manhattan Jaspers last Friday in a game they dominated from start to finish. Overall the Orange are 3-0 outsourcing their opponents 54-20, however, their opponents have a combined record of 2-4 through the first four three weeks of the season. While the Orange haven’t played much when it comes to tough competition, their offense is flying around and scoring at ease. What makes the Orange offense so lethal is their ball movement and how well they can spread their scoring around. The Orange have one of the deepest offenses in the country if not the deepest. This will by far be the Terps' toughest opponent so far this season and could be the toughest offense they face all season. Ajax Zappitello will have the task of shutting down Joey Spallina, the Orange’s top offensive threat. Spallina leads the Orange with 26 points so far coming off of 10 goals and 16 assists. However, even if Zappitello shuts down Spallina the rest of the Terps defense will have a very tall task in slowing down the Orange.  The defensive side of the field is the Orange’s weakness however the Terps offense has not been great to start the season. On defense, the Orange are led by long stick midfielder Saam Olexo and Riley Figueiras. Both Olexo and Figueiras lead the Orange in caused turnovers so far this season with four each. Olexo however is a massive threat for the Orange on the fast break scoring two goals on the season already which is half of his total from last season. While the defense is somewhat a weakness for the Orange, they still are a solid unit however they have dealt with injuries at the short stick defensive midfielder position lately. But even if the Terps can get open shots against the Orange they will have to deal with all-American goalie Will Mark for the Orange as well. Mark has 28 saves on the season with a 58% save percentage. If the Terps can play a clean game and not turn the ball over, I like their chances to pull out the win on the road. The only problem is turning the ball over has been something the Terps offense has done a lot through the first two weeks of the season.  Another big matchup to watch in this game is the faceoff positions. Luke Wierman is one of the best in the country, however he will be up against Mason Kohn who was the top faceoff man of division three lacrosse from last season and so far this season he is facing off at a 77% win rate. If Wierman can dominate the battle at the faceoff, it will massively help the Terps chances of escaping Syracuse with a win.  I expect this to be a very physical and fast-paced game. While that will probably lead towards Syracuse’s favor, they have yet to play a full game this season while the Terps have played a double overtime game this season. If the Terps do not turn it over on offense and can slow the game down and give the defense breaks, I think the Terps will pull out the win on the road with a final score of 13-11.  The game is at Syracuse and is set to face off at 6 PM on Saturday. It will be a nationally televised game airing on ESPNU. Related Links

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