The Syracuse women’s lacrosse team climbed to No. 4 in the IWLCA Coaches Poll and No. 3 in the KANE Media Poll, both season highs, following a pair of wins last week that extended its winning streak to nine games, according to a March 30 announcement.
The team’s continued rise in the rankings reflects strong performances against ranked opponents and an effective defense. The Orange’s recent victories include wins over five ranked teams: Loyola (No. 13), Northwestern (No. 4), Yale (No. 7), Virginia (No. 19), and Pittsburgh (No. 23).
In their latest game against Pittsburgh, Syracuse started with eight unanswered goals and led by a wide margin of 15-2 at the end of the third quarter. Mackenzie Rich recorded a career-best seven points with four assists and three goals, while Molly Guzik extended her goal-scoring streak to twelve games by scoring four times.
Defensively, Syracuse has held opponents to just seven goals per game—third lowest nationally—with Izzy Lahah leading with thirty-four caused turnovers and Coco Vandiver adding twenty-nine. Vandiver also set a new program record for career caused turnovers during the Pittsburgh game, reaching her one hundred second turnover milestone. Goalkeeper Dan Guyette has maintained a goals-against average of six point eight, which is also third best in the country.
Looking ahead, Syracuse will play two road games this week: first against Cornell on Tuesday, March thirty-first and then facing seventeenth-ranked Duke on Saturday, April fourth. The team’s final home regular season match is scheduled for Saturday, April eleventh at JMA Wireless Dome against Notre Dame—a contest that will also serve as Senior Day.
