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With just under three minutes left on the clock, Syracuse was running out of time to score an equalizer. Le Moyne had held a 1-0 lead since the 17th minute, and SU looked to score in any way possible.

From behind midfield, Sam Layton lofted a ball to outside the Dolphins 18-yard box and Le Moyne’s Michael Krzeminski was called for a foul against Nicholas Kaloukian. On the free kick, Carlos Zambrano served it to the far post, but the ball was headed out of the box. Ernest Bawa collected it and rocketed a shot back in, but it was deflected out of bounds for a Syracuse corner kick.

Sachiel Ming served the corner kick to Chimere Omeze on the back post, and his header was also deflected out, leading to a corner on the opposite side. Nathan Scott crossed the ball to the near post this time for Kaloukian, who directed the ball on the net. But Le Moyne goalkeeper Wyatt Dupell adjusted to deny the chance.

No. 7 Syracuse received two corners and two free kicks in the final three minutes, but each time it had a scoring chance, it was rejected. Despite drawing 10 corners and 17 fouls, SU (2-1-1, 0-0-0 Atlantic Coast Conference) failed to convert its set pieces, falling 1-0 to Le Moyne (2-1-0, 0-0-0 Northeast Conference).

“Our service wasn’t as good as it should be,” SU head coach Ian McIntyre said postgame.

In the fourth minute, Syracuse created its first corner kick by taking the ball deep into Le Moyne’s half. As the ball was crossed in, it found the foot of Omeze. However, he missed wide of the net. Less than a minute later, the Orange forced another corner but couldn’t register a shot.

Approaching the 13-minute mark, with the game still scoreless, SU brought the pressure on Le Moyne and created its fourth corner. As the Orange loaded the six-yard box, the ball floated in, but Dupell was the quickest to it. The goalkeeper delivered a well-timed punch to send the ball away from the net.

Three minutes later, with the Dolphins refusing to budge, they took the ball into SU’s half. Omeze tried to slow Le Moyne’s attack with a tackle but was called for a penalty in SU’s box. Jack Goodrich finished off the penalty shot with a missile to the bottom right of the net, giving the Dolphins a 1-0 advantage.

Syracuse looked to swing momentum, leading in corner kicks 5-1 through the match’s first 21 minutes. Despite creating clear chances on goal and controlling possession, SU’s offense still couldn’t produce results.

Right before halftime in the 44th minute, the Orange drew a free kick following a yellow card on Brady McNulty. Kristjan Fortier served the ball toward the box and Layton found an open chance for a shot. Though he missed just to the left of the post.

Early in the second half, Syracuse returned to set itself up for scoring chances on free kicks. Kaloukian drew a foul just outside the box and elected to take the kick himself. The Dolphins formed a wall and Kaloukian couldn’t slot his strike past the defenders as it ricocheted off of Le Moyne’s defenders.

“(Le Moyne) put their bodies on the line,” McIntyre said. “They slowed the game down, as they should.”

Two minutes later, the Orange got another chance at a corner. After serving the ball into the box on previous chances, Elton Chifamba changed the strategy by passing to the near corner of the 18-yard box for Ezra Widman. Widman gathered the ball with a soft touch, and without a defender in his vicinity, he aimed for goal but missed about 20 feet to the right.

“We had a few different guys take (set kicks),” Chifamba said. “Myself, (Zambrano), (Scott) played in some good balls and it just wasn’t our night tonight. The ball just wasn’t falling in the back of the net.”

Le Moyne gifted SU a chance at a free kick at the top of the 18-yard box in the 79th minute. Zambrano’s ensuing effort was off the mark. Syracuse created the opportunities but placed just eight of 28 shots on goal.

In the 89th minute, Syracuse pushed the ball into Le Moyne’s half for the final time. Chifamba was hounded by Dolphins defenders right outside the box, leading to a free kick. Bawa stared down a wall of five Le Moyne players, but sailed the shot just over the crossbar, deflating SU’s comeback effort.

Published on September 3, 2024 at 12:02 am

Contact Timmy at: tswilcox@syr.edu | @TimmyWilcox32