Stephen Keogh has it easy. The Toronto native knows his role on the Syracuse men’s lacrosse team: finisher. He just has to hover around the net and find a sliver of space, and someone will find him.

‘All I’ve got to do is get open,’ the freshman attack said. ‘It makes my job kind of easy – just put the ball in the net.’

The method doesn’t matter: just ask Princeton’s goalie Alex Hewit. Keogh slipped one behind his own back and past the All-American three weeks back – a highlight-reel play in a season filled with them for the No. 2 Syracuse men’s lacrosse team.

The Orange (11-1) has won nine straight and hope to pump that number into double digits at home Saturday against newfound rival Massachusetts (5-7). Part of the reason for the success is the cohesion of the old and the new, an influx of fresh talent blending with a seasoned core shaped by the struggles of last year.

Senior captains Evan Brady and Kyle Guadagnolo team with juco transfer Sid Smith to protect rookie John Galloway in net. Freshman Jovan Miller shares the second midfield line with junior roommates Dan Hardy and Pat Perritt.

And Keogh is the fourth man in the veteran attack rotation – he usually replaces starter Greg Niewieroski for the second quarter and also plays on the man-up unit. He has 13 goals on the season, seventh on the team. Niewieroski holds the fifth place spot with 15.

‘They both do a great job inside, being able to get open, catch the ball and finish in tight spaces,’ senior attack Mike Leveille said. ‘And that’s what you need from a crease guy. Greg is a little more experienced, but Steve’s been doing a great job this year.’

Playing with passers on the attack line like Leveille (22 assists) and junior Kenny Nims (17) makes sure of that. Keogh’s shooting percentage (.464) is the second-highest on the team and the highest of any player with more than 10 goals.

The 21-year-old spent two years at Brewster Academy, a prep school in New Hampshire, before coming to Syracuse. But his lacrosse apprenticeship began with box lacrosse in Canada, a hybrid form of the field game played in college. Box lacrosse is played indoors on a space the size of hockey rink, will all short sticks and smaller goals.

Improvisation is key. Inventive shots, like the one against Hewit, are the norm up north. And the cramped space makes the field game seem roomy.

‘(Canadians) have a great knack from the indoor game of where to be and how to get open,’ Leveille said.

Keogh felt shaky in the fall, adjusting to the long poles and larger field, but Leveille was able to help him through that, working with him after practice to get comfortable.

Now, the freshman can focus on finishing. And where he comes from prepared him for that.

‘The box goal is a lot smaller than the field goal,’ he said.

The Tewaaraton? Whatever

Maybe if the Tewaaraton Foundation just gives Leveille its Trophy, he’ll get excited about it. Maybe once this season ends, there’ll be a time for that, to revel in all he’s done this year (33 goals and 22 assists so far).

Leveille, along with fifth-year senior Steven Brooks, was named a finalist for the award last Wednesday, one of 22 players named. But the senior from Delmar, N.Y., sits in the two-hole on the list of Tewaaraton favorites, behind Duke’s Matt Danowski, the winner last year.

That doesn’t mean Leveille’s too worried about it.

‘It’s nice, but really, what’s great about this season so far is the success we’ve been having as a team,’ he said. ‘As long as that keeps continuing, that’s all that really matters to me after these last three years.’

ramccull@syr.edu

Published on April 23, 2008 at 12:00 pm