Rutgers’ offense struggled. It struggled to get a shot off and to get the ball in the net.

Amidst the woes the Scarlet Knights faced Saturday stood John Galloway. Off the 14 first-half shots Rutgers tallied, the SU goalie Galloway saved six. But the other eight did not find the back of the net, as Galloway and the rest of the Syracuse defense held Rutgers scoreless in the first half.

The first-half shutout was a first for the Orange in the 2009 season. SU head coach John Desko said the 5-0 lead Syracuse established before halftime is what locked the game up.

No. 5 Syracuse defeated Rutgers 10-3 here at the Carrier Dome Saturday. After holding Rutgers’ scoreless for 30 minutes of play, the Orange (9-2) never looked back. It cruised to an easy win, with at least the accomplishment of a first-half shutout to boast.

‘John (Galloway) made some pretty good saves,’ SU head coach John Desko, the Syracuse head coach said. ‘That can frustrate a team. You have a few shots at it and he turns you away. So I was very happy with how the defense played.’

Desko had no complaints about his defense Saturday, calling his team ‘stingy.’

The Rutgers offense was scrappy, chasing after loose balls and their own missed shots, but the SU defense and Galloway proved too much of a challenge for the Scarlet Knights (4-8).

‘Rutgers is a good team offensively, not to take anything away from them,’ Galloway said. ‘But I think our defense played really tough today and communicated well. You know we came out tough.’

Galloway allowed just one goal while protecting the net. The always-modest Galloway said he didn’t have to make any good saves because ‘his defense never lets opponents take good shots.’ Desko disagreed with his goalie, saying Galloway came up with big saves that intimidated and frustrated the Rutgers offense.

Desko said he was also pleased with backup goalie Al Cavalieri, who allowed two goals, making the total three goals tied for the fewest goals Syracuse has allowed an opponent all season. In the Orange’s season opener against Providence Feb. 15, the Friars scored three goals in Syracuse’s 22-3 stomping.

Long-stick midfielder Joel White called Saturday ‘the best talking day’ Syracuse had has this season. The Orange defense prides itself in its communication, and struggles on days like April 4 against Princeton inside a windy Giants Stadium. Syracuse lost its second game of the year to the Tigers, 12-8 as a result of the defenders inability to hear one another.

But inside the friendly confines of the Carrier Dome, the SU defense shined and provided few doubts about how Syracuse would fair against future Big East opponents.

Besides preventing any first half goals from going in the net, the SU defense sparked plays and goals for its offense. Sid Smith created a turnover, passed it to Greg Niewieroski, who threw it to Nims, who assisted Chris Daniello for the goal in the first quarter.

The combination of a scoreless first half for Rutgers and the defense creating offensive plays helped cement Syracuse’s easy win over the Scarlet Knights.

‘I think defensively like Joel (White) said we just communicated really well,’ Galloway said. ‘We all just came together for a full 30 minutes in the half.’

mkgalant@syr.edu

Published on April 11, 2009 at 12:00 pm