S
yracuse men’s lacrosse entered the 2024 season with raised expectations. Head coach Gary Gait knew it. Star attack Joey Spallina knew it. Everyone knew it. It was time to bring SU back to the “Orange Standard” from Gait’s heyday as a player in the late ‘80s and early ‘90s.
While they had their best campaign of Gait’s three-year head coaching tenure — winning an NCAA Tournament game for the first time since 2017 — the Orange bowed out prematurely, falling to Denver in the national quarterfinal.
With missed opportunities comes an even higher standard for Syracuse. The Orange enter 2025 in their best spot on paper since Gait took over, ranking No. 2 in the nation behind Notre Dame. Though, the question remains if SU can put its playoff demons behind it and return to the sport’s pinnacle for the first time in 16 years.
Here’s how our beat writers think Syracuse men’s lacrosse will fare in its highly-anticipated 2025 campaign:
Cooper Andrews
Close, but no cigar
Record Prediction: 11-3 (3-1 ACC)
X-Factor: Jimmy McCool
MVP: Joey Spallina
Gait’s program is poised to take a massive leap in 2025. The Orange will cement themselves as national title contenders after earning substantial regular-season road victories over Duke and Virginia. They’ll make their first Final Four since 2013. I even think Spallina will be Syracuse’s first Tewaaraton Award winner since Mike Leveille in 2008.
But one thing has defined Gait’s head coaching career: he hasn’t won it all. From 2007-21 as SU’s women’s head coach, he made three NCAA Championship games and won none. And even in, arguably, his best chance to end that drought, Gait’s national title record will drop to 0-4 come May.
I envision Notre Dame being too much for Syracuse to handle in the postseason. The Fighting Irish are an impenetrable steamroller. While the Orange are uber-talented, their hype still rests on hypotheticals: if Jimmy McCool can play better in net than Will Mark, if Spallina can control every game, and so on.
This season will be an improvement from the last, no question about it. Owen Hiltz’s return makes SU’s attack the best in the country, and RIT transfer Michael Grace solidifies a lethal long-pole tandem with Billy Dwan. But I think the Orange will fall inches short of a magical title run.
Zak Wolf
Put up or shut up
Record Prediction: 11-3 (3-1 ACC)
X-Factor: John Mullen
MVP: Owen Hiltz
This time last year, I was writing about how Syracuse needed to make the NCAA Tournament to show progress under Gary Gait. It did that by making the quarterfinals. The natural progression is to now make the Final Four. It’s a high bar to set, but for this group, it’s not too lofty. The coveted 2022 recruiting class — led by Spallina — are now seasoned veterans, ready to compete for a national championship.
Spallina is obviously what makes this team go, but the team’s strength is its attacking depth. I expect a mammoth season from Hiltz, while guys like Finn Thomson and Trey Deere can also provide adequate options.
This offense is going to be hard to contain, which is why their success could be dictated by how John Mullen performs at the faceoff X. As a freshman, he went 57.8% while playing second fiddle to Mason Kohn. I don’t expect any drop-off, and dare I say, Mullen will be better than Kohn.
This team is good enough to go all the way. Will they do that? For now, the most likely scenario is they’ll make the Final Four but fall just short. But again, it’ll be another step in the right direction.
Nicholas Alumkal
Return to the Promised Land
Record Prediction: 13-1 (3-1 ACC)
X-Factor: Michael Leo
MVP: Joey Spallina
Yes, you read that right. Syracuse will be the National Champion in 2024. In Gary Gait’s fourth year at the helm, SU is primed for its first title since 2009 after reaching its deepest NCAA Tournament run since 2017 last season.
Besides Notre Dame, the Orange have the fewest questions of any contender entering the season. Most of the roster returns, with Spallina, Thomson, Michael Leo and Dwan ready to elevate their play. Veterans like Sam English, Hiltz and Carter Rice bring the leadership needed to win at the highest level. SU also added Grace, a key defensive piece to address a unit that struggled to cause turnovers last year.
Still, two key questions remain. First, who replaces Mark in net? McCool is the likely starter, and any improvement on Mark’s 52.4% save percentage could solidify SU’s dominance. Second, who takes over faceoff duties from Kohn? Mullen’s strong performance last season suggests he’s ready for the larger role.
Syracuse has a complete team. It will play on Memorial Day Weekend for the first time since 2013. And I expect it to edge the Fighting Irish in an instant classic title game, returning the Orange to their proper place on the throne of college lacrosse.
Photograph by Arnav Pokhrel | Staff Photographer
Published on January 29, 2025 at 11:32 pm
