The official sports blog for The Daily Orange

The New York Red Bulls signed former Syracuse standout goalie Jeremy Vuolo to a contract on Wednesday, according to an SU Athletics press release.

Vuolo played for the Orange for only one season in 2010, after transferring from Hartwick College to come to Syracuse with head coach Ian McIntyre. At both Hartwick and SU, Vuolo played a total of 69 games, had a 1.07 goals-against average and also finished with 21 shutouts.

Although Syracuse finished 2010 with a 2-10-5 record, Vuolo still established himself as a premier goalie in the Big East.

“We are all excited for Jeremy,” McIntyre said in the release. “He has worked extremely hard and is coming off an excellent season in Finland. I know that he will continue his soccer education with the New York Red Bulls and under the guidance of goalkeeper coach Todd Hoffard. We all wish JV the best of luck as he embraces the next chapter of his career.”

This past season, Vuolo was overseas playing for AC Oulu in Finland, seeing action in every game while having thee shutouts, and helping to lead the team to a third-place finish.

“After doing extensive scouting, we believe that Jeremy has a very bright future ahead of him and can compete at the MLS level,” Red Bulls General Manager and Sporting Director Erik Soler said in the release. “He had a very good year playing professionally in Finland and brings many great attributes to the table. We expect that he will compete for a starting spot this year.”

cjiseman@syr.edu

The Syracuse men’s lacrosse team will have 13 of its 14 regular-season games televised in 2012. The Orange will be featured on Time Warner Cable Sports, SportsNet New York, ESPN and ESPNU during the season, according to a SU athletics press release.

SU’s matchup with defending national champion Virginia on March 4 will be shown on ESPN. The network will also air five other games on ESPNU, including games against national powers Johns Hopkins, Duke and Notre Dame.

ESPN will also broadcast the inaugural Big East tournament, which will take place from May 3-5. The semifinals and championship game will be aired on ESPNU. The conference tournament includes the top four teams from the regular season standings.

Syracuse’s game against St. John’s on the road on March 10 is the only game not planned to be on television.

rjgery@syr.edu

After six weeks as the No. 1 team in the country, Syracuse has slipped off the top spot.

The Orange’s first loss of the season Saturday at Notre Dame caused it to drop to the No. 3 ranking in the latest Associated Press Top 25 and to the No. 4 spot in the USA Today/ESPN Coaches’ poll, both released on Monday. SU’s six-week stretch with the top spot tied the 1989-90 team’s run as No. 1 for the longest consecutive period of time at No. 1 in school history.

Kentucky assumed the top spot in both polls, receiving 61-of-65 first-place votes in the AP poll and all 31 first-place votes in the USA Today/ESPN poll. Missouri was second in both polls, receiving two first-place votes in the AP poll. Syracuse received the other two first-place votes with its No. 3 ranking.

Ohio State also moved ahead of SU in the USA Today/ESPN poll, bumping the Orange back to No. 4. The Buckeyes are fourth in the AP poll, and Kansas ascended two spots to move into the top five in both polls.

There are only four Big East teams ranked in the AP poll — Georgetown, Marquette and Connecticut, in addition to Syracuse. There are five in the USA Today/ESPN poll, but Louisville dropped out of the AP Top 25 after falling to Marquette on Monday.

Murray State, the only undefeated team in the country, is ranked No. 11 in the AP poll and No. 9 in the USA Today/ESPN poll.

mcooperj@syr.edu; @mark_cooperjr; @DOsports

Michelle Tumolo was named the Big East Preseason Offensive Player of the Year Friday, after a vote by the conference’s head coaches.

The junior attack was joined on the Preseason All-Big East team by sophomore midfielder Katie Webster, a fellow unanimous selection, and junior defender Becca Block.

Syracuse, which finished 10-8 last season, was predicted to finish second in the coaches’ poll, receiving three first-place votes and 59 total points. Georgetown edged out the Orange, earning five first-place votes and 60 total points as preseason conference favorites.

Tumolo picks up where she left off last season, earning multiple postseason accolades. The first-team All-Big East selection led SU last season with 63 points, 33 assists and four game-winning goals in 2011. Her 137 career points place her 10th in SU history while her 70 assists rank fifth.

Webster tallied 39 points in her freshman campaign and was named All-Conference First Team. She tied for second on the Orange with 32 goals, while Block set career bests last season with 24 draw controls, 16 ground balls and eight caused turnovers.

The Orange will look to rebound from last season’s first-round Big East tournament exit in 2012, opening its season February 21 against Boston College. Opening draw is set for 4 p.m. in the Carrier Dome.

DaJuan Coleman and Jerami Grant, who both committed to Syracuse in the fall, were nominated to play in the 2012 McDonald’s All-American game. The future Orange players are among 600 players — boys and girls — included in a list released on Thursday by McDonald’s.

Coleman, ranked as the No. 3 center in the class of 2012 by Rivals.com, is averaging 20.1 points per game for Jamesville-DeWitt this season. He has helped the Red Rams win three straight state championships. They are currently ranked No. 1 in the state.

Grant is scoring 12.2 points per game for DeMatha Catholic (Md.), who is currently the No. 3 team in the country, according to the USA Today Super 25 rankings. Grant is rated as the 19th-best forward in his class, according to Rivals.

On the girls side, four SU commits were nominated.

Brianna Butler, a guard for Nazareth, is ranked as the No. 13  prospect overall in the class of 2012 by ESPN HoopGurlz. Brittney Sykes, also a guard, from University High School (N.J.) is the N0. 30 recruit overall in the class. Forward Pachiyanna Roberts out of McEachern (Ga.) is rated as the No. 35 best player at her position. Guard Cornelia Fondren from Overton (Tenn.) is the No. 73 recruit in the class and No. 30 at her position.

The talented group along with Butler’s teammate at Nazareth, forward Taylor Ford, makes up the No. 6 recruiting class in the nation, according to Collegiate Girl’s Basketball Report — the highest-ranked class in program history.

McDonald’s will announce the final rosters of 24 boys and 24 girls during the McDonald’s All-American Games Selection Show on ESPNU on Feb. 9 at 5 p.m. The games will take place March 28 at the United Center in Chicago.

rjgery@syr.edu

With signing day less than two weeks away, Syracuse brought in two more verbal commitments on the defensive line over the past two days.

Mark Garrick, a defensive end from Hopkins, S.C., who played for Sacramento Junior College this season, committed to play for SU on Wednesday. The 6-foot-4, 270-pound end was one of many recruits who visited Syracuse last weekend.

Garrick could help fill the voids at defensive end for Syracuse. Chandler Jones decided to enter the NFL draft and forego a fifth season at SU after last year, and seniors Mikhail Marinovich and Torrey Ball are graduating.

Zian Jones, a defensive tackle from Los Angeles who played for West Los Angeles Community College this season, then decided to commit on Thursday. Jones is 6 feet, 5 inches and 310 pounds. He also visited SU last weekend.

Jones had other offers from Eastern Michigan and New Mexico State.

In other recruiting news, defensive end Josh Manley, who committed to the Orange earlier in the week, is now a “soft verbal,” according to Scout. He has picked up an offer from Missouri and will visit the school on Jan. 27.

mcooperj@syr.edu; @mark_cooperjr; @DOsports

The Syracuse football team added two players from Milford Academy (NY) to its roster Thursday, according to a release from SU Athletics. Quarterback Ashton Broyld and linebacker Myles Davis, both former SU recruits, will join the Orange for spring football.

Prior to Milford, Broyld attended Rush-Henrietta High School (NY) and led his team to the 2010 New York Class AA State Championship. He was also named the state player of the year.

Although he was expected to start his career at SU this fall after signing a national letter of intent in February, Broyld failed to meet NCAA eligibility guidelines, according to the Democrat & Chronicle in Rochester. He also was sentenced to 80 hours of community service and had to pay a $120 fine for disorderly conduct last June when he admitted to exposing himself to a crowd after fouling out of a Rush-Henrietta basketball game.

While at Milford, Broyld shined as a dual-threat quarterback. He threw for 427 yards and six touchdowns but also ran for 259 yards and another six scores.

Davis, who was originally expected to play for SU in 2010, attended Penn Hills High (Penn) before enrolling at Milford. But his 2010 season there was cut short by a torn ACL, which also kept him off the field in 2011, too. He made 10.5 tackles in 2010 prior to the injury, including 6.5 for loss.

In a poll of the seven Big East coaches released Thursday, Syracuse was picked as the favorite to win the conference. The Orange received 34 points and four of seven first-place votes, and the coaches were not allowed to vote for their own teams.

Villanova and Notre Dame were the only two teams to receive first-place votes, marking the first time since the beginning of Big East men’s lacrosse in 2012 that Syracuse was the unanimous first choice. The Irish received one first-place vote and and 29 points for second place, while the Wildcats garnered two first-place votes and 28 points for third place.

Georgetown, St. John’s, Rutgers and Providence rounded out the rest of the poll.

Syracuse is the two-time defending conference champion.

SU junior defender Brian Megill was also named the co-Big East Preseason Defensive Player of the Year, while Notre Dame’s junior goalkeeper John Kemp was also given the title.

Megill has started every game of his career with the Orange, and scooped up 34 ground balls and also caused 27 turnovers, first among SU defenders, en route to a selection to the All-Big East Second Team last season. In 2012, Megill will wear No. 11 after wearing No. 10 for his first two seniors. Long-stick midfielder Joel White wore No. 11 last season, and before White, defender Steve Panarelli wore the number. Megill is going to look to make No. 11 an signature number for defenders, just as No. 22 remains  the honored number for offensive players.

Four members of the Orange were also named to the All-Big East Preseason Team – also released Thursday – as senior attack Tim Desko, sophomore defender Matt Harris, junior attack/midfielder JoJo Marasco and Megill were all given the honor. Both Marasco and Megill were unanimous decisions.

cjiseman@syr.edu

Syracuse head women’s soccer coach Phil Wheddon has announced that Neel Bhattacharjee will join the team as an assistant coach. Bhattacharjee spent the last three seasons at Boston College working directly with the goalies and serving as the team’s recruiting coordinator.

“Neel brings a wealth of experience to our staff and will be a tremendous asset in all aspects of the program,” Wheddon said in an SU athletics release. “We are proud to have someone of Neel’s caliber joining our staff.  I would like to personally welcome Neel and his family to the Syracuse community.”

As one of BC’s assistant coaches, Bhattacharjee helped the Eagles secure their first College Cup appearance in 2010. He handled numerous administrative aspects for the program including co-directing the Lady Eagles Soccer School.

Eagles goalie Jillian Mastroianni has notched 19 shutouts over the past two seasons under the direction of Bhattacharjee. Mastroianni gave up just 14 goals in 20 appearances this season.

In 2006, Bhattacharjee served as the goalkeeping coach for the USA Under-21 Women’s Soccer National Team for a competition in Scotland and England. Prior to Boston College, Bhattacharjee was the associate head coach for the George Washington women’s soccer team.

adtredin@syr.edu

For the sixth straight week, Syracuse sits atop the college basketball rankings.

The Orange remained the No. 1 team in both the AP and USA Today/ESPN Top 25 polls on Monday. SU tied a school record set by the 1989-90 team for the longest stint as the No. 1 team.

Syracuse received 60 of 65 first-place votes in the AP poll for the third-straight week. In the USA Today/ESPN poll, the Orange was a unanimous first-place choice, garnering all 31 first-place votes.

Kentucky, Baylor, Duke and Missouri rounded out the top five in both polls. In the AP poll, four of the remaining five first place votes went to Kentucky and the other one went to Baylor.

Syracuse, Baylor and No. 12 Murray State are the three remaining undefeated teams in the country.

mcooperj@syr.edu, @mark_cooperjr, @DOsports