If you caught one Syracuse women’s soccer game this season, you’ve seen them all.

SU may get a new opponent from game to game, but its game plan virtually stays the same. And the Orangewomen’s formation? You guessed it. It’s the same 3-4-3 game in and game out.

So why should SU’s game against Rutgers tonight at 7 at Syracuse Soccer Stadium be any different? Well, it won’t.

‘We just want to get better at what we have been doing against other teams and not really change anything,’ junior Shana Thomas said.

There is one difference, though. For the first time all year, Syracuse (7-2-0, 1-0 Big East) defenders will be specifically targeting one of the opposing players. Midfielder Carli Lloyd has led Rutgers (6-3-0, 1-0 Big East) to a hot start comparable to that of SU.

‘She is just really technical with the ball,’ defender Erica Mastrogiacomo said. ‘She’s their playmaker, she’s their star. They treat her like she’s the Queen of Rutgers.’

And she’s a weapon on offense and on corner kicks.

‘Everyone looks to get her the ball,’ Mastrogiacomo said. ‘She has a good shot and she can curve the ball around a wall.’

But from past matchups against the Scarlet Knights, SU has learned how to stop Lloyd.

‘When we defend her really well, she gets mentally in a shell and she can’t get out of it,’ Mastrogiacomo said. ‘Two years ago, when we played them, you could just see the frustration in her. She was yelling at her teammates.’

If the Orangewomen stop Lloyd, they should continue their success against Rutgers, which they are 4-0-1 all-time against. And SU’s hoping that trend will stay the same, too.

The Orangewomen also visit St. John’s on Monday at 3:30 p.m., in just their second in-division game. Their plan against the Red Storm? Naturally, more of the same.

‘Each game is pretty much the same,’ midfielder Kelly Bailie said. ‘But we have to play everything perfect and do everything right because one mistake can lead to a breakdown.’

Published on October 2, 2003 at 12:00 pm