Syracuse saw its postseason run end in the NCAA lacrosse semifinals Saturday afternoon, falling to Maryland 14-8 at chilly Gillette Stadium (31,524 announced attendance) in Foxborough, Mass.
Gary Gait's fourth season finally broke through to get the 'Cuse to the national semifinals, but the Terps are SU's kryptonite, having won all five games between the teams since Gait came aboard in 2021. The 'Cuse ended the season 13-6.
Here are three takeaways from a tough day on the field after a 12 year absence of appearing in the Final Four:
1. The Orange simply committed too many mistakes to beat a disciplined Terps team that excels in the NCAA Tournament.
Maryland, in the John Tillman coaching era dating back to 2011, simply does not beat itself in its tension-filled NCAA games, and Syracuse did not do its part to cut down on a season-long bugaboo of self-inflicted errors, making its long return to the semifinal stage.
In a game that had some similarities to the 11-7 regular season UM win, SU trailed 8-1 with 3:44 left in the second quarter, and If the 'Cuse wasn't committing ill-timed turnovers, its defense struggled with defenders bunched in close to the goal leaving UM shooters open for great shots, and four Terps scored double-digit goals.
Meanwhile, the Orange shot selection was all over the place (only 21-of-40 on goal), while facing a wall in UM goalie Logan McNaney who had 14 saves and his close-in defensive unit, and until reserves came in late, they held the Orange to half of their season average of 14 goals a game.
Even when SU staged a mini-burst of momentum in the third quarter, all the 'Cuse could end up accomplishing after halftime was basically matching the Terps goal-for-goal, unable to win enough faceoffs to control the tempo, a killer against methodical Maryland.
Be careful what you wish for in the small world of NCAA lacrosse.
A week ago after torching Princeton with four goals and four assists, and sniping back at online critics in a postgame interview deriding his big-game performances, Joey Spallina had a tough afternoon against Maryland.
Time and again SU's leading scorer was played straight up by UM's best defenseman Will Shaller, struggling to get free and barely got into the scoring column with an assist on SU's last inconsequential goal scored by Sam English with three seconds to play.
Michael Leo and Finn Thomson had two goals each, but like Spallina, Owen Hiltz was also contained after scoring the game's first goal in the game's first minute, missing the goal entirely on his other four shots.
An early look at the 2026 roster shows many key returnees, and wondering about off-season transfer portal additions for positions of need.
There is no doubt that Gary Gait has been able to build upon each proceeding year to move the program forward in his now-completed fourth season.
After getting over the hump of not being able to defeat ACC colleague Notre Dame since 2019 with two wins over the Irish this season, SU still can't overcome the Terps, dropping all five games since Gait and Tillman reinstated the series. It will be interesting to see if it is renewed in 2026 for a game in the Dome.
While the Orange lose standout players such as Hiltz, English, Carter Rice and Nate Levine, there's a stocked junior class returning with experience at both ends of the field.
The transfer portal opened May 11 (which doesn't make sense with the postseason not ending until May 26) and closes June 9. SU is likely looking for a faceoff specialist, and quality depth at midfield both short and long stick, and depending on any potential outbound transfers from within the program.
By-the-way, the 2026 Final Four returns to a college campus for the first time since 2002 (Rutgers). The NCAA announced Saturday that the University of Virginia will host the event, filling in for Gillette Stadium, which will be undergoing preparations for soccer's World Cup. UVA's Scott Stadium has a capacity of just over 60,000.
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