Syracuse, N.Y. — New York Yankees Hall of Fame closer Mariano Rivera may have been in attendance at the JMA Dome on Friday afternoon, but Joey Spallina was “The Sandman” to Manhattan.
Spallina put the Jaspers to bed in setting a new single-game career scoring mark with 10 points (3 goals, seven assists) as the Syracuse University men’s lacrosse team throttled Manhattan 16-3.
Spallina became the first Orange lacrosse player to score 10 points in a game since Ryan Powell on March 28, 2000 against Hobart.
He would have challenged Casey Powell’s single-game record of 13 points in a game had coach Gary Gait not taken mercy on Manhattan and pulled his starters for the fourth quarter.
“That is awesome,” Gait said of Spallina’s 10-point outburst. “It shows the ability and what this team is capable of. No player takes credit for doing something like that. It’s a team effort, but he has ability to have big games and lead this team. We’ll need him in big games to come.”
“I look up to them,” Spallina said of the Powell brothers upon learning of tying Ryan’s 10-point marker. “They were great here. Being in the same conversation as any of the Powells is great.”
Spallina added to a growing catalogue of eye-popping plays with a goal that beat the halftime buzzer by a hair.
With five seconds remaining in the first-half, SU face-off specialist Mason Kohn quickly won the draw and raced down the field to fire at the cage from 20 yards away. Spallina anticipated Kohn’s shot and put his stick in motion, catching the ball and planting it in the cage as time expired.
Spallina said he scored a similar goal in club lacrosse as time expired to win a game.
Owen Hiltz added three goals and three assists for Syracuse in the offensive onslaught. All told, 11 different Syracuse players scored against Manhattan.
The storyline coming in to Friday’s matchup was the reunion of Syracuse defensive coordinator John Odierna and the Jaspers, a team he led last season as head coach and served as an assistant for eight years prior.
“I’m glad it’s over,” Odierna said. “I was crying in the handshake line with some of the guys. You build a lot of relationships over eight years. It’s definitely one of the more unique experiences of my career. But I told my guys before the game we gotta play the game the same way no matter who shows up.”
Spallina and company took a lot of pressure off Odierna’s defense in building a 12-2 lead by halftime, but his defense made sure Manhattan would not threaten.
Syracuse held the Jaspers to 14 shots on goal. Goalie Will Mark made six saves with Manhattan’s Scott O’Connor netting all three tallies, one per period in the game’s first three.
Kohn continued his surge at the face-off X for Syracuse, winning 14-of-15 draws. The Orange won 19-of-23 faceoffs overall.
Friday’s win finished a busy stretch for Syracuse, winning three games in seven days. Syracuse won those three matchups (Vermont, Colgate, Manhattan) by a combined score of 54-20.
Syracuse’s three-game winning streak to open the season marks the first time since 2004 that it opened the season with three straight games scoring 14 or more goals.
“The last two years we’ve had some stats go the other way,” Gait said. “It’s nice to have a positive stat after the first week. It’s nice to know as a staff we’re heading in a positive direction.”
The stats are certainly eye-popping for the Orange, but it all gets put to the test when the competition level kicks up considerably next Saturday when No. 6 Maryland visits the dome.
If Spallina and the Orange can send the Terrapins off to never never land, the rest of college lacrosse better wake up to what Syracuse can do.
Notes: Syracuse midfielder Jackson Birtwistle returned to action after missing SU’s first two games with a lower-body injury. Birtwistle did not score on three shot attempts ... Odierna recruited Rivera’s son, Jaziel, to Manhattan and said the Yankees legend got connected to lacrosse through him. “He’s an awesome guy,” Odierna said of the Hall of Fame closer. “It’s really cool. I know he really values his lacrosse connection with Jaziel. His older sons played baseball. He feels like this is their special thing. He gets to be a lax dad rather than be Mariano Rivera the baseball player.”
Contact Brent Axe: Email | X | Voicemail 315-552-9164
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