HAMILTON, N.Y. — In its final regular season game of 2017, No. 3 Syracuse (12-2, 4-0 Atlantic Coast) escaped with a 11-9 victory Saturday afternoon over unranked Colgate (5-9, 3-5 Patriot) on Crown Field at Andy Kerr Stadium. SU junior midfielder Brendan Bomberry scored three goals, senior faceoff specialist Ben Williams won 16-of-23 chances at the faceoff X and Syracuse tallied its 10th win in its last 11 outings. A day before the NCAA tournament selection show, Syracuse did not look like a top-5 team in the country but squeaked out a win anyway.

The Orange, which beat the Raiders for the fifth straight year in a matchup that dates back to 1921, plays at home next Sunday night in the NCAA tournament.

Here are three quick reactions to SU’s victory at Colgate.

Late burst pushes Syracuse

After facing an early 3-0 deficit, Colgate went on a 7-3 run over the next two quarters and took its first lead of the game, midway through the third. That was quickly erased with back-to-back SU goals, first from Bomberry then by senior midfielder Sergio Salcido. Down one, senior attack Jordan Evans found an open Salcido at the top of the offense. The skip pass created a ripple in the defense, leaving Bomberry open near the crease. Salcido hit Bomberry for his third goal of the day to tie it up at 7.

On Syracuse’s next possession, Salcido hit a low right-handed rip off of a pass from Evans. The Orange retook the lead, 8-7, and held on over the remaining 20 minutes of play.

Bomberry’s fourth hat trick

The junior scored only one combined goal against Binghamton and North Carolina. He took only four shots over that 120-plus minute period. On Saturday, he returned to the form that made him the leading scorer for SU through seven games. His production slowed in recent weeks, largely because he was covered more closely near the crease and less aggressive with the ball.

His first goal on Saturday, also Syracuse’s first, came from a Joe Gillis transition feed three and a half minutes into the game. A few minutes later, he swept left to no avail. He came back around with a run behind the cage and swept right, then flushed the goal home. His third goal, which tied the game, put to rest Colgate’s 4-0 run to tie the game and sparked Syracuse’s four-goal run to retake the lead.

Ben’s return

Williams erupted to a hot start at the faceoff X, which set up SU’s offense to score three unanswered goals at the onset of the contest. He won 5-of-7 in the first quarter and 4-of-5 in the second. While he struggled in the third, winning only 2-of-6 chances and allowing Colgate to inch back into the game, he found his groove again in the fourth.

Williams, who entered Saturday after winning only 24 of his previous 51 faceoffs (47 percent), opened the last frame with a 30-second grind-it-out hold at the faceoff X against Collin Orr. He won all four faceoffs of the fourth, enabling Syracuse to get possession and mitigate its 17 turnovers.

Williams’ biggest faceoff came with 1:32 remaining, after a Colgate score made it a one-goal game. He won and, after a late Colgate shot to tie, SU regained possession. As the buzzer sounded, SU goalie Evan Molloy heaved a shot from the other side of the field. It went in for his first career goal, and Syracuse celebrated its 11-9 win.

Published on May 6, 2017 at 2:31 pm

Contact Matthew: mguti100@syr.edu | @MatthewGut21