After Syracuse jumped out to a four-goal halftime lead, momentum shifted and the Orange offense went silent.

 

All of a sudden, a potent attack went scoreless in the third quarter and Georgetown cut the lead to two.

 

That’s when Jeremy Thompson entered the faceoff X to start the fourth quarter, crouched down, flicked the ball in front of him and the Orange gained control. Thompson raced up the right side of the field and flung it across to Josh Amidon who whipped the ball into the net. Just ten seconds into the fourth quarter the Orange were on the board. The lead was at three, and it finally had some breathing room again.

 

‘That goal to start the fourth quarter really took a little bit of wind out of our sails,’ Georgetown head coach Dave Urick said. ‘I thought we had a chance to crawl back in that thing, we were only down two goals, but that was a huge goal.’

 

Amidon’s third goal of the day was part of a four goal fourth quarter that solidified the 15-12 win for No. 2 Syracuse over No. 11 Georgetown at the Carrier Dome in SU’s first-ever Big East conference matchup. In front of a season-high crowd of 6,108, the Orange got on the board early and put some key goals in the back of the net late to hold off a feisty Hoya squad.

 

The Orange were led by five goals from junior attack Stephen Keogh and four goals from Amidon.

 

Keogh set the tone in the first half, single-handedly outscoring the Hoyas 4-3 in the first quarter, But it was Amidon who struck when it mattered most. He scored two goals in the fourth quarter after the SU offense managed as many shots in the entire third quarter. After a slow start to the season this was a game Amidon was happy to have.

 

‘I tried not to think about the first three games too much and just let my game flow,’ Amidon said.

 

Not only did Amidon put the momentum-changer in to start the fourth, but with Georgetown threatening in the second quarter, it was Amidon who put to rest any idea of a Hoya comeback.

 

After two Hoya goals cut the Syracuse lead to 9-7 with two minutes to play in the half, it was another transition opportunity that Amidon cashed in. Gavin Jenkinson flicked the ball in the air off the faceoff. Amidon gobbled it up and passed it up to Joel White. White ran the break down the middle of the field and dished it off to Amidon on the right wing where he unloaded a low shot right by Hoya goalie Jack Davis.

 

Another Hoya run and another Amidon goal.

 

But on a day when Syracuse had Amidon to score big goal after big goal and four players register multiple goals, it was Jeremy Thompson’s only score of the afternoon that proved fatal for the Hoyas.

 

Georgetown cut the lead to 12-11 and was the closest they had been all day. But Thompson stepped to the X and this time, didn’t need Amidon or any Orange scorer. He won the faceoff and sprinted upfield on the right side. He unloaded and for the fourth game in a row scored a goal off of a faceoff. The Orange took the 13-11 lead with 7:30 to play in the fourth.

 

This is a trend SU head coach John Desko is more than aware of.

 

‘He has answered for us a number of times this year when the other team has the momentum and all of a sudden Jeremy puts one out in front and gets a score off of it,’ Desko said. ‘In the faceoff situation we got the momentum to swing back our way.’

 

Syracuse’s offense came out aggressive and put six goals up in the first quarter. They fired 24 first half shots on goal. But in the second half, when offense was scarce and the Orange only got off 11 shots, it was Amidon and Thompson who were there to score timely goals.

 

Though the Hoyas threatened at times, junior Jovan Miller knew his team had control.

 

‘When it was a one goal game and looked like it was shifting their way, as juniors we all know it is our time to step up,’ Miller said. ‘Sure your eyebrows raise a little when it is a one goal game, but we just kept our composure.’