Syracuse men’s lacrosse: Johns Hopkins preview and game thread

The Orange and Blue Jays are ready for another battle in one of the sport’s most historic matchups.

The Syracuse Orange have returned home from their successful trip to Utah last weekend to face-off with one of their biggest rivals in the Johns Hopkins Blue Jays today in the JMA Dome.

Any meeting with Hopkins is a big one in the lacrosse world, but this one perhaps has some extra importance given the Orange’s need for some resume building wins as we approach the midway point of the regular season.

‘Cuse and Hop are set for an opening face-off at 2 PM on ESPN U.

• All-time series: 63rd meeting; Johns Hopkins leads, 32-29-1
• Last meeting: Syracuse W, 14-13, at Crown Lacrosse Classic in Charlotte on March 9, 2024
• Syracuse this season: 4-2 overall, 0-0 ACC
• Johns Hopkins this season: 5-1 overall, 0-0 Big 10

Hopkins has played a lot of close games so far this year, with four of their six contests ending by a one-goal margin. Their last three games have all been by one goal, including last week’s nail-biter against Virginia.

They have wins over ranked teams in Georgetown, Denver and UVA, and their lone loss was a one-goal defeat to North Carolina.

Scouting Hopkins

The Blue Jays might not put up the most eye-popping numbers on either end; they’re ranked 34th nationally in both scoring offense (11.50) and defense (9.83).

What they are is an efficient shooting team (7th nationally, .352) who gets a lot of possessions thanks to a solid face-off unit (25th, .544) and who have an experienced close defense and goalie to anchor the other end.

Offensively, they’re led by dynamic duos at both attack and midfield. Attacker Russell Melendez (14G, 8A) leads the team in both goals and points, and is shooting 54 percent so far. His running mate is attacker Hunter Chauvette (13G, 5A), tied for second on the team in points.

The midfield is led by Matt Collison (10G, 8A), whose a matchup nightmare at 6’4”, 225 pounds. I wouldn’t be surprised to see one of ‘Cuse’s close defenders (perhaps Michael Grace) match-up with him instead of someone on the rope unit.

Hopkins’ midfield is also populated by the team’s leading assist getter, Brooks English (4G, 12A), who happens to be the younger brother of SU’s Sammy English. Perhaps we’ll see the brothers matched-up on each other when Sammy tracks back on defense.

A huge key to this game will be the face-off matchup between two of the busiest FOGO’s in the country this season. Johnny Mullen (.664) and Logan Callahan (.588) have taken the second and third most face-offs in the nation, and they’ve got the great success rates to match. If one can grab the upper hand, it could have big implications in what should be a very tight game.

The Blue Jays defense is led by graduate student close defender Scott Smith (8GB, 6CT), a First Team All-American last season, and Quintan Kilrain (12GB, 3CT), coming off an impressive freshman season as a primary starter. They’ll provide a stern test for the Orange attack.

In goal, Loyola graduate transfer Luke Staudt (53SV) brings a ton of experience to the cage for Hopkins. Staudt originally hails from Camillus and West Genny, so it’s a big-time homecoming for him today. He’s got a 9.83 goals-against average and a .473 save percentage this year.