Syracuse was in the midst of its second-straight slow start Wednesday. Head coach Gary Gait yelled for his team to “organize,” and that Connecticut was playing the backer defense, but the Orange’s offense was stagnant with little movement.

SU midfielder Kelly Cross turned the ball over on the possession after her pass was deflected, and UConn scooped up the loose ball and scored the first goal of the game.

Unlike when the Orange regrouped against Virginia on Monday, SU continued to play helter-skelter against the Huskies as passes rolled out of bounds and Syracuse didn’t clear the ball well.

“(Against) UConn, I think we were a little too casual, not exactly where we need to be mentally,” SU defender Mallory Vehar said, “but I think in both games we came together.”

Although No. 2 SU (5-0, 1-0 Atlantic Coast) won both games, it started slowly in both and looks to snap out of its early-game funk against No. 6 Boston College (3-0) on Saturday at noon in the Carrier Dome. SU is looking to cut down on the unforced errors that came as a result of its slow starts.

“They just weren’t mentally prepared, focused, they weren’t going full speed,” Gait said after SU’s game against UConn. “They looked a little sluggish.”

Against UVA, the game started much the same way. Despite winning the first draw, less than a minute into the game, attack Kayla Treanor threw a pass to Lisa Rogers that she couldn’t corral and it rolled out of bounds. Within offensive sets, SU didn’t have much movement. Only a timeout midway through the first half could stop the Cavaliers’ 4-1 run.

SU didn’t practice after its game against Virginia, so the players had short preparation time before playing the Huskies on Wednesday. Many of the same issues cropped up, and SU’s slow start turned into a sluggish game in which SU was never able to settle down.

Passes out of the defensive end seemed to find UConn players’ sticks, and the Orange only converted nine out of 15 clears. The conversion percentage was SU’s worst since before 2013. Syracuse also tallied 23 turnovers, its highest total of the season.

Assistant coach Regy Thorpe said the coaches also tried to reach a bit deeper on SU’s bench to keep the team’s legs fresh, a goal he thinks Syracuse achieved and will help the Orange against Boston College.

“It’s a grind when you have three games in six days, so just being mentally prepared,” Thorpe said of what he thinks will help SU be ready for Boston College.

Vehar placed part of the blame on Syracuse mentally not being in the game. After the Orange’s game against UConn, Gait said he thought SU suffered a letdown because UConn was sandwiched between UVA and BC, two ranked opponents.

“I think we all know after the past two games we need that start,” Vehar said, “so I think it’ll definitely be there tomorrow.”

Published on February 27, 2015 at 10:42 pm

Contact Chris: cjlibona@syr.edu | @ChrisLibonati