ALBANY – Beating Syracuse was a memorable night in a pretty forgettable 2022 season for the University at Albany men’s lacrosse program.
The Great Danes did it at Casey Stadium, no less, the Orange’s first visit to Albany. UAlbany won 14-12 in front of 3,688 rain-soaked fans.
“Ugly, stormy game, and a loss,” Syracuse head coach Gary Gait recalled with a laugh at his media availability this week. “That’s exactly it. We made a lot of mistakes … It was just an ugly game.”
The upstate New York rivalry moves back to its usual location at JMA Wireless Dome – remember, it’s no longer the Carrier Dome – as UAlbany opens the 2023 season at 6 p.m. Friday in Syracuse.
When: 6 p.m. Friday
Where: JMA Wireless Dome, Syracuse
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“I think any team, you lose the year before, you’ll remember that game and you want to go back and beat them,” UAlbany head coach Scott Marr said. “Unfortunately for (Syracuse), they had a lot of those, and so did we, so there’s lot of revenge tour for us this year, as well.”
While UAlbany went 5-10 last season, the proud Orange program slipped to a 4-10 record in its first year under Gait, the Syracuse playing legend. Syracuse missed the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2007.
“It’s a new season, new team,” Marr said. “He’s got a new team. Obviously, they look a lot better. They played very well against Vermont last week defensively, so their defense definitely looks shored up, I think.”
Syracuse (1-0) opened its season with a 7-5 victory last Saturday over two-time defending America East champion Vermont, which plays in the same league as UAlbany.
New Orange goalie Will Mark, a transfer from Long Island University, made 13 saves. Sophomore midfielder Jackson Birtwistle scored twice and graduate attack Alex Simmons, a Denver transfer…
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