The way the Syracuse women’s lacrosse team has won the last two games in close fashion, it looked as if it was destined to win each time.

The Orange overcame two red cards and two illegal equipment penalties (including one that negated a goal by senior Monica Joines) against Cornell on April 5 and withstood a 30-minute scoring drought that led to two separate comebacks by Loyola in a win on Saturday.

The two wins last week gave the Orange a six-game winning streak. The streak is similar to win streaks Syracuse had in 2003 and 2004. The Orange entered the second week of April in both years winning six straight, only to drop the next game – both times at the hands of Dartmouth. When Syracuse visits the Big Green today at 3 p.m., it faces its toughest obstacle so far this April.

No. 17 SU (8-2) will try to string together seven wins for the first time since 2000 while improving its position in the North and bolstering its case for an NCAA tournament bid.

But the Orange won’t be able to survive a scoreless stretch like it suffered against Loyola and expect to win. No. 7 Dartmouth (9-0) plays a fast-paced style, similar to SU’s. In contrast to the games against Loyola and Cornell, Syracuse will be at a disadvantage when the pace of the game picks up.

‘They’re going to come at us hard, they’re going to be a really feisty, aggressive team that is scrappy off of the midfield,’ said Syracuse senior Courtney Palladino. ‘We’re going to have to play really hard and really smart and take care of the ball in transition in order to beat Dartmouth.’

A loss to the Big Green could damage SU’s chances of getting into the NCAA Tournament. The Northeast is arguably the strongest region in women’s lacrosse, and the Orange probably needs to win the rest of its games to earn an invitation to the tournament if it loses to Dartmouth.

Syracuse went 2-3 after its loss to Dartmouth last year, dashing its tournament chances. SU finished 2-2 after losing to Dartmouth in 2003, but still advanced to the NCAAs.

Dartmouth is the highest ranked opponent left on SU’s schedule, and a win would allow Syracuse the opportunity to choose its own postseason fate.

SU plays No. 9 Maryland on April 24.

‘You want to dictate your own life,’ said Syracuse head coach Lisa Miller. ‘(Dartmouth is) going to finish in the top four. If we can beat them, then we are controlling our own destiny.’

Still, the Orange knows it needs its most complete effort today to win. Syracuse suffered lapses in each of its last four games, but found a way to win in the end. SU just hopes the wave of momentum it’s been riding this April carries it through.

‘It’s going to be a tough game,’ Palladino said. ‘The past two wins have been big for us as a momentum builder, hopefully we’ll just go from there. We’ve got to come out strong against Dartmouth. We’ve got to play a 60-minute game.’

Published on April 10, 2005 at 12:00 pm