Another year. Another season of high expectations. The 2011 Syracuse men’s lacrosse season doesn’t get underway officially until Feb. 20, but as a legitimate national title contender, it’s never too early for a look ahead.
Let’s start with a peek at its 15-game regular season schedule. The Orange, which returns six All-Americans and boasts a senior class that’s won two championships, will host three of last year’s four national semifinalists at home and will play in three NFL venues.
The Orange will play nine games at the Carrier Dome, including tilts against 2010 semifinalists Virginia, Cornell and Big East foe Notre Dame. Denver, Army, Albany, Johns Hopkins, St. John’s and Hobart also come to the Dome.
When the team travels, it will make appearances at M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore against Georgetown, at New Meadowlands Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J., against 2010 NCAA Champion Duke in the Konica Minolta Big City Classic and at Gillette Stadium in Foxboro, Mass., against Providence. It also will face Rutgers at the University of Connecticut’s Rentschler Field in East Hartford, Conn., for the ESPNU Warrior Classic. The Orange’s only true road games are at Villanova and Princeton.
The Orange opens its 2011 campaign at home against Denver on Feb. 20. It’s the second straight year Syracuse starts with the Pioneers. The team will attempt to avenge its first-round NCAA Tournament loss to the Army Black Knights on Feb. 27. The three-game homestand concludes when Virginia visits the Dome on March 4.
Syracuse begins Big East Conference play in a neutral site matchup against Georgetown in the Konica Minolta Face-Off Classic in Baltimore on March 12. The Orange opens the college lacrosse tripleheader; in the other matchups, Cornell faces Virginia and Johns Hopkins plays University of Maryland, Baltimore County.
The team returns home on March 15 to face Albany and then longtime rival Johns Hopkins on March 19. The Orange finish March with a road contest on March 26 at Villanova.
April begins with the Konica Minolta Big City Classic in East Rutherford, N.J., against Duke on April 3. Syracuse will play in the event’s nightcap, after Rutgers plays St. John’s and Johns Hopkins faces North Carolina.
The team travels to Princeton on April 9, then comes home to host Cornell on April 12. Syracuse takes on Providence at Gillette Stadium in Foxboro, Mass., on April 16. The Orange has enjoyed the friendly confines of Gillette, winning consecutive national championships there in 2008 and 2009.
Upstate New York foe Hobart comes to the Dome on April 19. Syracuse will take part in the ESPNU Warrior Classic against Rutgers in East Hartford, Conn., on April 23; Hofstra faces UMass in the other game. The Orange wraps up its regular season schedule at home against Big East rivals Notre Dame (April 30) and St. John’s (May 7).
The Orange tune up with exhibition games against Le Moyne and Hofstra on Feb. 5 and against Maryland on Feb. 10 at the Dome.
Sat, Feb. 5 Le Moyne/Hofstra (Exhibition) Carrier Dome
Thu, Feb. 10 Maryland (Exhibition) Carrier Dome
Sun, Feb. 20 Denver Carrier Dome
Sun, Feb. 27 Army Carrier Dome
Fri, March 4 Virginia Carrier Dome
Sat, March 12 *Georgetown (Konica Minolta Face-Off Classic) Baltimore, Md.
Tue, March 15 Albany Carrier Dome
Sat, March 19 Johns Hopkins Carrier Dome
Sat, March 26 *Villanova Villanova, Pa.
Sun, April 3 Duke (Konica Minolta Big City Classic) E. Rutherford, N.J.
Sat, April 9 Princeton Princeton, N.J.
Tue, April 12 Cornell Carrier Dome
Sat, April 16 *Providence Foxboro, Mass.
Tue, April 19 Hobart Carrier Dome
Sat, April 23 *Rutgers (ESPNU Warrior Classic) E. Hartford, Conn.
Sat, April 30 *Notre Dame Carrier Dome
Sat, May 7 *St. John’s Carrier Dome
Home games in bold.
Neutral site games in italics.
* denotes Big East games
