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Sarah Smalley looked up through a thick of five Monmouth players to find Charlotte de Vries positioned on the right post. With the ball at her stick and her back to the goal, de Vries flicked a shot off the shin guard of Monmouth goalkeeper Jessie Eiselin, and into the net, giving the Orange a 5-1 lead late in the third quarter.

The goal, her second of the game, placed de Vries fourth all time in scoring in program history with 43 goals, passing Yvonne Milionis.

Both de Vries and Pieke van de Pas led the Syracuse offense on Friday, each totaling two goals and an assist. All game long, the pair controlled the tempo as Syracuse outshot the Hawks 17-2 and did not surrender a single penalty corner, while attempting 11.

No. 8 Syracuse (3-0, 0-0 Atlantic Coast Conference) defeated Monmouth (1-2, 0-0 Coastal Athletic Association) 5-1 during its first home game in 2023. SU registered 13 shots on goal while Monmouth had just two, playing a stout defense along with being aggressive on offense.

The Orange didn’t waste time getting on the board as van de Pas scored just 43 seconds in. Receiving a pass from Willemijn Boogert off a penalty corner, she promptly fired it towards the goal. Eiselin was unable to corral the effort as the ball ricocheted off her body and into the back of the net, giving the Orange an early 1-0 lead.

Freshman Haddie Madden joined the scoring action 11 minutes in. Forward Amber Coebergh ran down the left wing and picked out Madden 10 yards ahead, positioned near the left goal post. Coebergh delivered a quick pass to Madden and the England native generated a tidy finish to give Syracuse a comfortable 2-0 lead.

The game was not within one score for very long, as less than three minutes later van de Pas deposited her second goal in the back of the net. de Vries provided the assist. On a fast break, De Vries sent a pass 15 yards upfield and connected with van de Pas who gathered the ball and took a dribble to her left, juking Eiselin for the score. The goal, which came with 8 minutes left in the second quarter, gave Syracuse a 3-1 lead, which they carried into halftime.

“Before we even attack we have eye contact and awareness of where each other are,” de Vries said on her chemistry with van de Pas. “We work very well off of each other, where one’s inside, the other’s outside, and she dribbled outside which meant I knew I had to be inside which created that goal.”

In the third quarter, van de Pas was part of another scoring play, once again connecting with de Vries. Leading a counter attack, de Pas found de Vries on the left flank. After three touches, de Vries beat her defender and sent a rocket whistling toward the roof of the net. The goal put the Orange up 4-1 with 13 minutes remaining in the third quarter.

“(She’s) a very skilled player who works for her team,” head coach Lynn Farquhar said of de Vries. “It’s exciting to see her in the circle, but she also puts in the work off the ball to make (scoring opportunities) happen.”

Monmouth did not register a shot until 4:26 into the second quarter. In transition, the Hawks’ Jess Tucker found Sofia Fouces on a long ball. Fouces relayed a pass to Tucker who outran the Syracuse defense and put a shot past goalkeeper Brooke Borzymowski for the score.

Tucker’s goal was one of the few defensive breakdowns over the course of the game. The only other Monmouth shot came with eight minutes left. Lauren Relik escaped SU’s backline to shoot low but Brozymowski was there to halt the attempt.

Syracuse’s defensive unit, led by Eefke van den Nieuwenhof and Sienna Pegram, only allowed two shots on the day and zero penalty corners.

Van de Pas and de Vries combined to score four of the five goals. Five different SU players assisted on goals showing the unit’s depth.

“Game by game, people are getting more confidence, and that’s all it takes to get points on the board,” de Vries said. “We have a lot of subs that can make an impact. Even people who aren’t starting, they’re very trustworthy too.”

Published on September 1, 2023 at 9:04 pm