It's official: the match against Boston College on October 31st marked the end of the Syracuse Orange women's soccer 2024 campaign. With failure to qualify to the ACC Tournament, which only admits the top six teams in the league, the team has now failed to make a post-season appearance in each of the 12 years since joining the ACC.
Since our last update, the Orange played their final three games of the regular season where they hosted NC State and Miami before traveling to Boston College to conclude the year.
The match against NC State saw Cuse pick up one of its best results of the season. An early Erin Flurey penalty kick and strong defensive performance allowed the Orange to see out a 1-1 draw against a decent NC State side.
On October 24th against Miami, the Orange looked like they might be able to irk out a result following a beautiful goal from Ashley Rauch. Unfortunately, a late game collapse and two goals conceded in a short window meant the match went down as a 3-1 loss.
In their season closer at Boston College on October 31, an early goal for Flurey wasn't enough to hold off an in-form BC who roared back to win the game 3-1 in dominant fashion.
Unfortunately, through this final stretch of games, the Orange often looked like a team devoid of hope who were playing with nothing on the line. Given that the team was the first to be eliminated from ACC playoff contention a few weeks ago, this was indeed the case.
The Orange's early string of ACC losses dug them into a hole that they could not escape, as they missed the postseason altogether and finished bottom of the ACC table for the third time in the last four seasons.
This end result starkly contrasts with the hopes around the team in the early periods of the season when the Orange had gone 6-1-1 in non-conference play just before entering their ACC schedule.
The team's best result of the season came during this early stretch, specifically in their first game, where they earned a convincing 2-0 win over UMass, who currently ranks as a top-50 side in the nation according to the NCAA RPI statistics.
Unfortunately, the most difficult division in NCAA Soccer proved again to be too much for Head Coach Nicky Thrasher Adams' team. After the late loss against Miami, Adams was quick to point out that her athletes had not followed the game plan as she had directed.
"I'm scratching my head a little bit trying to understand why everything we trained did not apply this week," she explained. "In the goals we gave up we were lacking mentally. Defensively, it was not acceptable."
Adams explained that this has been a problem for the team throughout the season. She said, "We're not playing like we're training; what do you expect? We're over-complicating things. We're making it really difficult."
Since coming in as head coach in 2019, the program has struggled mightily with a 24-61-10 overall record over that stretch, a 30.5% win percentage. In ACC play, the Orange have been significantly worse, with a win percentage of just under 11% and a record of 3-47-6.
The Orange suffered heavily in the ACC this year from a statistical standpoint, being outshot in every ACC match. The team also conceded the most goals (24) in ACC play and scored the fewest (4).
One of the main issues the Orange faced this year and in recent years is having a clear sense of purpose, direction, and tactical approach. Some teams in the ACC, such as NC State, clearly take a defense-minded approach that looks to shut up shop and prioritize an organized defense above all else. This mentality was on show in a chippy game at SU.
Although NC State only scored one more goal than SU, they were defensively in the top half of the table, marking the real difference between the teams.
Similarly, Miami showed a clear identity against the Orange as their team pressed high as a unit, looked to condense space, and aimed to thread balls in behind the defensive line to their speedy starring forwards.
The Orange have lacked this identity in recent years, and it seems that in some cases, they simply rely on the individual brilliance of some of their players to get them out of tough situations.
At the back, Shea Vanderbosch was, at some times, single-handedly responsible for keeping her team in games as the Orange conceded the most shots per-ACC game in the league by a wide margin. The average ACC team conceded a bit over 12 shots per game in ACC play. The Orange conceded over 22 shots per game. Vanderbosch led the league in saves per game and was critical in ensuring that SU's defensive record was not worse than it already was.
On the opposite end of the field, Flurey carried a heavy attacking burden in a free role up front, where she was tasked with finding pockets of space to make things happen. She also tied for the team lead in goal contributions with five goals and one assist. Although Flurey is an excellent ball carrier, as seen in almost every game, she often lacked the support from runners around her to capitalize on her movement and dribbling abilities.
Outside of those two, Ashley Rauch in midfield was probably the team's most important player. She tied Flurey in goal contributions with five goals and one assist, and was an absolute engine in the midfield. Directing play and winning the ball back were two of Rauch's standout qualities in the team this season, but she also often found herself isolated in the attacking third when looking to create chances.
With all three of these players eligible to return for the 2025 campaign, Coach Adams should have a core of experienced players to build around. Additionally, Adams has given plenty of minutes, including the talented Anna Croyle, Iba Oching, and Gabby Wisbeck. With a few seniors graduating, it can be expected that these six players will be the building blocks of next season's roster.
The two areas that the Orange will need to improve for next season to up their level are in holding midfield and center-back. Croyle was great this year as a freshman and will develop to become even better. To make her job easier, she will need another strong and athletic center-back who can win balls in the air and compete with the physical teams in the ACC.
The Orange also would do well with a holding midfielder who is hopefully not only comfortable but elite on the ball. This player would need to be a physical presence as well, but their main purpose would be to dictate the pace and organization of games from the base of midfield. This is a player that the Orange have sorely lacked in recent seasons.
Overall, the Orange may have had a difficult season, but there are still some reasons to be positive and hopeful. The non-conference results show a marked improvement over last year despite the consistent ACC struggles. There will need to be some dramatic changes made to see real improvement in the ACC, but one or two successful off-seasons may be enough to provide this solution to Coach Adams' team.