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The last time Syracuse was in the College Cup, it came down to penalty kicks. The Orange had kept Clemson scoreless in Kansas City, but also couldn’t find the back of the net in regulation. But once the match got into extra time, they missed two of their three shots, dropping the penalty shootout 4-1. 

“We created chances tonight,” said SU head coach Ian McIntyre after the defeat in 2015. “On another night we score a goal, maybe two.”

Syracuse returns to college soccer’s final four for the first time since 2015 — only the second time in program history. On Friday, the Orange will face Creighton, an unseeded squad with the best attack in the country. The Bluejays have the top striker in Division-I and have dominated some of the nation’s top defenses. But should SU win, it will face the winner of Indiana-Pittsburgh on Monday for the national championship.

Before Syracuse plays in its biggest match of the year, here’s everything you need to know about Creighton:

The last time the two played:

The College Cup matchup will be the first time Syracuse and Creighton have played each other.

The Bluejay report:

Creighton quickly jumped out to a 5-0 start, averaging over four goals per match. But for the remainder of the regular season, the Bluejays sputtered, recording a 4-3-5 record. While they continued to score at a high volume, they struggled against the top teams in the conference, like Georgetown (2-1 loss), Seton Hall (1-1 draw) and Xavier (3-1 loss), placing them as the No. 6 seed in the Big East Tournament.

But just like Syracuse, Creighton ran the table in its respective conference tournament. The Bluejays got revenge on all three of their conference foes, starting with 2-1 win over the three-seeded Musketeers. Duncan McGuire scored four times in the eventual 6-0 victory in the next round. Then, in the Big East championship against the Hoyas, the Bluejays recorded another clean sheet, winning their first conference title since joining the Big East and earning an automatic NCAA Tournament berth.

Emma Kelly | Design Editor

In the first round against Missouri State, though, it looked like the Bluejays were going home early, trailing 1-0 through 80 minutes. But Creighton’s Jake Ashford and Alejandro Maillet each scored in the final 10 minutes to steal the win. 

Traveling to Seattle for the second round to face No. 1 seed Washington, Creighton responded with three goals after Huskies scored first. For their third-round matchup at No. 15 seed Tulsa, the Bluejays won 2-1 with an 87th minute penalty kick goal from Giorgio Probo. Against No. 4 seed Duke, the second-best scoring defense in the country, Creighton scored three times, holding on to the win and moving on to the College Cup for the first time in a decade.

How Syracuse beats Creighton:

Creighton’s head coach, Johnny Torres, promised “fireworks” for its matchup with Syracuse. And with the Bluejays being the highest scoring offense in the country (63 goals) and the Orange being with the 15th-best attack (43 goals), expect there to be some goals.

SU’s Levonte Johnson and Nathan Opoku have proven to be one of the best scoring tandems in the country, both receiving All-Region honors on Tuesday. They can take advantage of a Creighton defense that doesn’t match the heights of its offense. The deciding factor for this matchup will be whether or not the back three of Syracuse can stop the Blue Jays’ attack. 

It will probably be Christian Curti, Abdi Salim and Olu Oyegunle starting in the back while Noah Singelmann moves up into the midfield. Fellow defender Buster Sjoberg might make an impact as well depending on his health. If the backline can give goalkeeper Russell Shealy enough time to make stops, then the Orange might have a chance to slow down Creighton’s highly-touted offense. 

Emma Kelly | Design Editor

Stat to know: 1.35 goals against average

While no team can match Creighton’s offensive output, its defense is quite pedestrian. The Bluejays have a goals against average of 1.35, which places them at 103rd in the country. Creighton’s starting goalkeeper, Paul Kruse, has a save percentage that ranks 119th in Division I. 

In all four tournament games, Kruse has allowed at least one goal. While the offense has done more than enough to make those few conceded goals not matter, Shealy has allowed only two goals, including a clean sheet against Cornell. These little differences might give Syracuse the slight edge. 

Player to watch: Duncan McGuire, forward, No. 13

Of the Bluejays’ 63 goals this year, McGuire has over a third of them. McGuire started the season with a hat trick against Oakland, and then two goals against Rutgers. McGuire has had four multi-goal games this season, with his most recent coming against Washington where he scored two goals in two minutes to seal the Bluejays’ spot in the Sweet 16. Along with Johnson, McGuire was named a semifinalist for the Mac Hermann Trophy yesterday. 

Published on December 8, 2022 at 1:01 am

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