The Syracuse women’s soccer team knew a lot of things going into Sunday’s match at Connecticut. The Orangewomen knew UConn was ranked No. 14 in the nation. They knew the Huskies sat atop the Big East’s Northeast Division, in which SU resides, too.

Certainly, they knew the importance of the match.

‘The only thing I know for sure is if we beat UConn, we’ll be in the Big East tournament,’ goalkeeper Emily Kowalczyk said Oct. 21. ‘If we don’t win, other teams have to do certain things for us to get in.’

But knowledge isn’t everything, and it wasn’t enough for Syracuse on Sunday.

The Huskies beat the Orangewomen, 6-0, controlling most of the game thanks to stellar play from Big East Offensive Player of the Week Kristen Graczyk. Graczyk assisted on two goals, while scoring a hat trick – giving her eight points – on eight shots. Syracuse only managed nine of its own.

Graczyk’s performance may have singlehandedly kept Syracuse (9-7-1, 3-3-0 Big East) from postseason play.

No matter how their Northeast division opponents finish out the season, the Orangewomen will miss the Big East tournament and likely any postseason play for the second straight year because of their loss to UConn (10-4-3, 5-1-0).

After a 3-11-3 record last season, the Orangewomen originally had their sights set on making the Big East tournament to prove they had turned their dismal performance around.

Nine wins later, though, they’re singing a different tune.

Co-captain Erica Mastrogiacomo, who sat out the past two games with a knee injury, doesn’t necessarily think that making the Big East tournament was the single test of the team’s success.

‘Looking back to preseason, we did our job,’ she said last week. ‘We worked hard even before preseason. In the beginning of the season, we were winning on the road, which was a big gain for us because those are the toughest games to win.’

In its past six games, though, Syracuse has only managed to come away with one win and one tie.

‘As the season progressed, we won some good games and we had some close calls we ended up losing, though we played well,’ Mastrogiacomo said. ‘Now, looking back, you say, ‘If only we could have maybe done (something different).”

Syracuse will host No. 24 Princeton tomorrow at 7 p.m. in its final game. It’s SU’s last chance to display its improvement. But despite the outcome, the Orangewomen know their opinions of their season won’t change.

‘Personally, I’m happy,’ Mastrogiacomo said Oct. 21. ‘We’ve been playing great, especially after last season. We’ve bounced back.’

Published on October 27, 2003 at 12:00 pm