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NCAA D1 Tourney: #6 Florida falls to #3 Syracuse 17-11 in the Quarterfinal of the NCAA Tournament

  via UF press release  

Gators Season Comes to a Close in NCAA Quarterfinals

  BOX SCORE SYRACUSE, N.Y. – The sixth-seeded Florida lacrosse team finished its 2021 campaign on Saturday after falling to the third-ranked Syracuse Orange 17-11. The Gators conclude the season with a stellar 18-3 record, including a 10-0 record in conference play. Florida swept both the ACC regular season championship, as well as the tournament championship this season. UF also swept all six major AAC postseason awards and had 10 players earn All-Conference accolades. Paisley EaganBrianna Harris and Shannon Kavanagh led the way offensively for Florida, each registering two goals apiece in the game. Grace HausEmily HellerKassidy BresnahanDanielle Pavinelli and Shelton Sawers all found the back of the cage once. Harris dished out three helpers in the game, bringing her to 94 for her career – tying her for first in program history (Ashley Bruns). Haus added two assists in the game, while Emerson Cabrera tallied one on the afternoon. Florida won 15-of-30 draws in the game, with Harris collecting a team-high five. Kavanagh added three of her own, while Emma WightmanKaitlyn Dabkowski and Eagan each registered two. Wightman posted a team-high two caused turnovers in the game, while Becky Browndorf and Pavinelli joined with one apiece. Kavanagh and Wightman both notched a team-high three groundballs on the afternoon, followed by two from Dabkowski and Pavinelli. Sarah Reznick recorded 11 saves in her 60 minutes between the posts. Records 6-seed Florida (18-3, 10-0 AAC) 3-seed Syracuse (16-3, 8-2 ACC) How It Happened
  • Brianna Harris got the Gators on the board first, dodging multiple defenders to put Florida up 1-0 just 20 seconds into the game.
  • Syracuse responded with back-to-back free position goals to take the 2-1 lead, with the second coming on a man-up opportunity for the Orange.
  • Shannon Kavanagh knotted the game at 2-2 after converting her free-position attempt at the 18:37 mark, but the Orange once again responded with a two-goal run to take the 4-2 lead.
  • Paisley Eagan fired one into the back of the cage on a feed from Harris to pull the Gators to within one at 4-3 before Syracuse answered to pull ahead 5-3.
  • The Gators scored the final two goals of the half to tie the game before the teams headed into the locker room. Eagan netted her second of the day – once again on a pass from Harris – while Emily Heller scored the equalizer with five seconds remaining.
  • Out of the break, the Orange went on a 3-0 run to take the 8-5 lead just four minutes into the second frame, forcing a Florida timeout.
  • After the UF timeout, Syracuse put two more on the board before Grace Haus found the back of the cage on a free-position attempt to pull the Gators within four at 10-6. The Orange responded at the 19:48 mark, once again putting Syracuse up five goals.
  • Kavanagh fired one into the back of the cage on a pass from Emerson Cabrera and that was followed by Kassidy Bresnahan’s first of the game to pull Florida within four at 12-8.
  • Syracuse tacked another on the board with just over 11 minutes remaining to extend its lead back to five, but Shelton Sawers scored on a great feed to the middle from Haus with just over 8:30 remaining in the game.
  • Harris fired a rocket into the net to pull the Gators to within three at 13-10, but Syracuse responded just over 90 seconds later to extend the lead back to four goals with 6:47 remaining.
  • After another Orange goal to put SU up 15-10, Danielle Pavinelli scored an empty-netter after forcing a Syracuse turnover to pull Florida back to within four goals with 3:29 left in the game.
  • Syracuse scored the final two goals of the game with under two minutes remaining, earning the 17-11 victory and a Final Four berth.
  Notables
  • The Gators concluded the 2021 season with a 18-3 record
  • Florida moves to 10-10 in the NCAA Tournament
  • UF is now 4-8 against the Orange in the all-time series
  • Shannon Kavanagh finished her career as a Gator ranked third in points (295), third in goals (217), fourth in assists (78) and first in draw controls (353)
  • Grace Haus finished her career as a Gator ranked 11th in points (195) and ninth in goals (153)
  • With her three assists in the game, Brianna Harris tied the program record for the most in a career (Ashley Bruns – 94)
  • Harris also finished her career as a Gator ranked ninth in points (210) and 13th in goals (116)
  • Cara Trombetta finished her career first in program history in caused turnovers with 149 and second in groundballs with 191
  • Kaitlyn Dabkowski finished her career as a Gator ranked eighth in caused turnovers (55)
  • Streaking: Shannon Kavanagh’s streak of 48 consecutive games with a goal is the longest in program history
  • Streaking: Kavanagh also has a streak of 48 consecutive games with a point – the second-longest streak in program history
  • Streaking: Brianna Harris has recorded a point in 41-straight games, the fourth-longest streak in program history
  • Streaking: Harris has also registered an assist in 15-straight games, the second-longest streak in program history
  • Streaking: Kaitlyn Dabkowski has tallied a groundball in 16 consecutive games, tied for the fifth-longest streak in program history
  • Streaking: Grace Haus has recorded a goal in 21-straight games, the fourth-longest streak in program history
  • Streaking: Sarah Reznick has recorded a save in 29-straight games, tied for the fourth-longest streak in program history
  O’Leary’s Insight
  • “We came into this game really prepared, but credit a really good Syracuse team. They put forth a fantastic effort. We held they well in the first half, but they came out very strong in the second half and we did not match that energy. Proud of my team – proud of the effort they put forth in a unique season.”
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