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A year after its first double-digit loss season ever, Syracuse returns to the field Saturday afternoon to host Vermont in its 2023 season-opener.

The Orange missed the NCAA Tournament for the first time (in a non-pandemic year) since 2007, when they went 5-8. Second-year head coach Gary Gait leads a young SU team, expected to be led by redshirt sophomore attack Owen Hiltz and highly-touted freshmen Joey Spallina and Finn Thomson. Syracuse also has a new starting goalie in Will Mark, who transferred after playing three seasons at Long Island University.

Vermont finished last season 12-7, going 6-0 in America East play, and losing in the first round of the NCAA Tournament to top-seeded Maryland. The Catamounts won the America East Tournament behind wins over UAlbany and UMBC and won all of their conference games by at least seven goals last season.

Here’s everything to know about Vermont before Saturday’s matchup:

All-time series

Syracuse leads, 1-0.

Last time they played

Then-No. 7 Syracuse and Vermont faced off in week three of the 2021 season, with the Orange coming out on top in a 17-13 win in the first-ever meeting between the two schools. Stephen Rehfuss led SU with six assists and eight points and Hiltz added five points behind four goals.

SU had some defensive issues, allowing Vermont to generate 52 shots — including 34 on goal — but goalie Drake Porter recorded a career-high 21 saves. Catamounts midfielder JJ Levandowski led them with 13 shots and Thomas McConvey had four goals on six shots. Porter, though, helped Syracuse escape a potential home upset.

“When they did get their shots off, for Drake Porter to have 20 saves, that says something too,” then-head coach John Desko said after the game. “I think he was seeing the ball very well today.”

The Catamounts report

Vermont lost its top three goal scorers from last season, including its No. 1, McConvey, who earned America East Offensive Player of the Year and third-team All-American honors last season after registering a program-record 60 goals. Gone, too, are veteran attacks Michael McCormack (40 goals, 11 assists in 2022) and Liam Limoges (32 and 11).

One key returner is attack David Closterman, a graduate student who was first-team all-conference last year and started all 19 games. He finished second on the Catamounts with 65 points and led the team with 36 assists. Closterman had three points — all on assists — in the Dome two years ago. Joining him is senior attack Brock Haley, Vermont’s second-best assists man last season and a fellow all-America East first-team selection.

UVM has two returning goalies who saw limited action last season. Two-year starter Ryan Cornell graduated after winning America East Defensive Player of the Year (the first time ever a Catamount has won the award) and notching an 8.91 goals against average, which ranked fourth nationally. George Egan, a junior, allowed 11 goals in five games last season, while Matt Shaffer, a graduate student, allowed four goals in 24 minutes over seven games.

How Syracuse beats Vermont

Both of these two teams are facing a lot of unknowns heading into the season, given how much talent each lost after last year. Syracuse lost its top four scorers, including Tucker Dordevic, who recorded 47 goals — 13 more than second-best Brendan Curry. Dordevic transferred to Georgetown after the season, while Curry and Owen Seebold graduated. Mikey Berkman, who had 14 goals and nine assists as a redshirt sophomore last season, also entered the portal, eventually settling at Division-II Rollins College.

The departures present the Orange with a youthful attack, led by Hiltz, who’s returning from an injury suffered before last season, and Spallina and Thomson, two five-star freshmen. Midfielder Jackson Birtwistle, who finished fifth on SU in points last season, also returns. It’s unclear where most of Syracuse’s scoring will come from, though Hiltz is a good place to start. Gait said each of the younger players will have their opportunities, too.

“You’re gonna see an entirely new attack this year, and I’m excited about it,” Gait said. “There’s no way one guy’s gonna be amazing without the other guys.”

To take down Vermont in the season-opener, Syracuse will need a strong offensive performance, something that eluded it in several games last season, particularly in games against Maryland, Johns Hopkins and Notre Dame, when it failed to exceed 10 goals. Mark will also need to have a strong game in net, and SU’s defense will have to contain Closterman and Haley.

Stat to know: 48th

While SU consistently faces one of the toughest schedules nationally — including the fifth-strongest last season — Vermont was barely in the top 50 last season. The Catamounts lost at No. 3 Duke last February, the only ranked team they played until losing to Maryland in the NCAA Tournament. Syracuse, meanwhile, faced 10 ranked opponents in its 14 games last year. While both teams enter this game unranked, Vermont will be an underdog against the only power-conference school on its schedule.

Player to watch: David Closterman, attack, No. 10

Closterman is entering his fourth year as a starter, and earned America East Rookie of the Year honors in 2019 when he had 25 goals and 12 assists in 14 games. He’s been a go-to scoring option for Vermont for several years now and will be the point man for Syracuse to shut down on Saturday.

Published on February 2, 2023 at 1:02 am

Contact Connor: csmith49@syr.edu | @csmith17_