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Kayla Treanor was ready to pull her starters with Syracuse leading 22-7 early in the fourth quarter. But not before the Tyrrell sisters could connect one more time.

Meaghan Tyrrell was positioned on the right side as Emma Tyrrell cut toward the cage from the top of the 12-meter. Meaghan found Emma, who laced a shot past Blue Jays goalie Morgan Giardina. It was Meaghan’s 50th assist of the year and Emma’s 50th goal.

“Unreal. So skilled, so smart,” Johns Hopkins head coach Tim McCormack said of the Tyrell duo. “They were all over the place.”

Meaghan and Emma’s 17 combined points paved the way for Syracuse’s (17-2, 8-1 Atlantic Coast) 25-8 demolition of Johns Hopkins (9-9, 4-2 Big Ten), as it advances to the NCAA Tournament quarterfinals. The siblings controlled the pace of the game from the get-go. Emma scored a hat trick in the first quarter and Meaghan followed with her own in the second. Emma’s seven goals tied Meaghan’s program record for goals in an NCAA Tournament game.

The Orange led 12-6 to start the third quarter, where the duo linked up for a score. Eighteen seconds into the half, John’s Hopkins’ Georgie Gorelick tightly guarded Emma as she sprinted around the 12-meter. Emma explored passing options and she found Meaghan uncovered to the right of the cage. Avoiding Gorelick’s stick, Emma passed it high to her sister, who received the feed and netted her fourth goal of the game.

“We were just really focused on coming out hot in the third quarter, sometimes we struggle with that,” Emma said. “Everyone being on the same page really helped us get there.”

With the score evened at 2-2 in the first period, Emma took over. She scored three straight goals in the final 5:28 of the opening quarter, scoring two from free-postion.

Emma consistently figured out ways to create space within the 8-meter, constantly drawing fouls. Reagan O’Brien gave Emma her first free-position attempt, and she converted it past Maggie Tydings to give the Orange a 3-2 lead, one it wouldn’t give up.

She scored off another free-position just over two minutes later, bouncing a low ball by Tydings. With 13 seconds remaining in the opening quarter, Emma possessed the ball at the edge of the 12-meter. She cut into the Blue Jays’ defense, turned her stick sideways and flipped a shot to the lower right side of Tydings. It culminated Emma’s personal scoring streak as she registered her 10th hat trick of the year.

“Emma got a lot of momentum early off of the draw, and was just seeing the ball well, shooting it well,” Treanor said.

Emma continued her stellar play in the second half. She held the ball near midfield and streaked downfield, running past a group of Johns Hopkins defenders. Emma cut right, squared up with the net and fired a moving shot to the left side of Giardina.

Emma finished with seven goals and one assist on the afternoon for a season-high eight points. It was her most points since April 15 against North Carolina, when she put up six points on four goals and two assists.

Meaghan began the contest relatively quiet. She fed Megan Carney in front of the net a minute into the first for Syracuse’s opening goal, but contributed zero points the rest of the quarter. To begin the second quarter, Olivia Adamson took a free-position shot from the left side. She galloped toward the goal, but instead of shooting, Adamson fed Meaghan after she cut from behind the cage. Meaghan sent it past Giardina, putting SU up 6-2.

“She was great off-ball today, which I think a lot of people scout her as needing the ball,” Treanor said.

The goal was the first of three for Meaghan in the second quarter. With 7:44 left, Meaghan received a pass from Carney, turned and fired into the back of the net to give Syracuse a 9-3 lead.

The clock ticked down to mere seconds as the Orange held an 11-6 lead near the end of the half. Emma missed a shot high, causing the ball to roll toward the back wall. Adamson scooped up the ground ball and spun around. She saw Meaghan position herself in front of the net, and passed one over the heads of three Blue Jays defenders.

Giardina was caught out of position. Meaghan corralled the pass and had a wide-open look, completing the hat trick. It was Meaghan’s 100th point of the 2023 season, and it was the third time she’s tallied at least 100 points in a year. She joined Alyssa Murray as the only other player in program history to accomplish that number three times.

“I thought they were just spectacular today,” Treanor said of the duo.

Published on May 14, 2023 at 7:44 pm

Contact Cooper at: ccandrew@syr.edu | @cooper_andrews