Men’s lacrosse puts away rival Duke with fourth quarter rally

The Syracuse men’s lacrosse team took the reins on their season after a nail-biting victory against the No. 10 ranked Duke Blue Devils. The Saturday afternoon victory was exactly what the Orange needed.

Less than four minutes into the first quarter, the Orange seized control of the game when freshman midfielder Matteo Corsi scored the first goal for the Orange. Corsi was a significant contributor to the game, later putting another goal behind Duke’s goalie for his fourth goal of the season.

“I know what I can bring offensively and do whatever I can to help the first-line group,” Corsi said. “When they get tired, we can step in and know our role and contribute.”

However, Corsi wasn’t the only player who contributed to the big win. Minutes later, sophomore Saam Olexo scored to give SU a 2-0 lead. Duke quickly fired back with nine minutes remaining in the first quarter, as graduate student Sean Lulley put a goal on the board for the Blue Devils.

Redshirt sophomore Mikey Berkman also had a memorable game for the Orange. Freshman midfielder Tyler Cordes assisted Berkman’s first goal halfway into the first quarter. Berkman later scored another goal in the second quarter, giving him 12 goals total this season.

Duke started bringing the pressure in the second quarter, scoring three more goals. But that didn’t stop the Orange, who matched the Blue Devils with three of their own, taking an 8-4 lead into halftime. 

“I thought it was our best ball movement on the offensive end, and top to bottom, great team effort,” head coach Gary Gait said. “We’re going to need that to continue.”

The third quarter turned the game into a back and forth battle as the Blue Devils came out hot. Dyson Williams aided Duke’s comeback efforts with an early second half goal. However, it wasn’t long until redshirt junior Tucker Dordevic came back with two goals, extending SU’s back to four goals midway through the third quarter.

With every minute of the third quarter, the Blue Devils and Orange left the fans at the edge of their seats as the ball swished behind each goalie. Duke ended the quarter with three straight goals, cutting SU’s lead to a single goal.

“We had a bit of a tough third quarter there,” Gait said. “It wasn’t our best quarter, but we were getting opportunities still, and we didn’t stop playing. The key was we did make some big plays when we needed to do that and that was the difference.”

Dordevic made sure his name didn’t go unknown, as he led SU with five goals and an unforgettable shot pinned right through his legs. All in all, you could say it was Dordevic’s show today.

THIS. IS. SICK.

📺 ESPNU pic.twitter.com/P9VAYpt5QF

— Syracuse Men’s Lacrosse (@CuseMLAX) March 26, 2022

“As I was reaching out for it, I realized I was in front of the goal and I just shot it underhand in between my legs, so I didn’t get in trouble,” Dordevic said. “I was just pumped, it was a fun game.”

SU finished the game with a 14-10 victory. The Orange will now prepare to hit the road for a meeting with No. 12 Notre Dame next Saturday.