Within the first six minutes of Thursday’s season opener against Colgate, the Syracuse women’s lacrosse team scored three times. In the last six minutes of the first half, it scored four. And after a 10-minute halftime came another three uncontested goals.

Syracuse (1-0) scored early and often in the team’s 19-14 win over the Raiders (0-1) on Thursday. The Orange was dominant offensively, shooting at any open opportunity. The offensive leaders were no surprise. They came in the form of senior Tee Ladouceur and sophomore Michelle Tumolo, who have traditionally been a strong pairing up front for the Orange.

The first game of the season was a chance for SU head coach Gary Gait to get a look at how his team handled game situations. The veterans took the reins, particularly on offense, and the freshmen showed promise.

The defense wasn’t as strong, but senior goalie Liz Hogan was missing between the pipes due to a red card she received at the end of last season. This allowed freshman goaltender Alyssa Costantino to get some time along with the rest of the new class.

‘It was good to see the depth of our team and the different players and what they had,’ Gait said.

In the debut game, Gait tried to give everyone a chance to get time on the field. He said the game had less structure than games in the future will. A direct result of his attempt to see how each new member of the team plays.

Now that he has that information, however, he will look to tighten up the team and find more definite positions for the players.

‘We’re going to focus on more organization,’ Gait said. ‘We’ve given them a chance to kind of freelance and just play lacrosse, and now we’ll work a little more with them.’

Ladouceur led the team with six goals and an assist. She was involved in almost every aspect of Syracuse’s offense, whether she was scoring or drawing a foul. Tumolo took a less prominent role, leading the team in assists but scoring only once.

The two veterans made a dominant pair up front, with Tumolo assisting on two of the senior’s goals. They have developed a chemistry that allows them to play together seamlessly. At one point, they even pulled a trick play in which they did a quick handoff behind the goal, disguising which player actually had the ball from the Colgate defense.

‘We have not only that play, but a couple of other trick plays up our sleeve where we kind of fake people out like that,’ Ladouceur said. ‘And that’s where it makes it fun.’

Some of the freshmen stepped up to join some of the more seasoned members of the team in producing the win. Kate Webster showed her speed in the midfield and jumpstarted the second half with a goal after only 20 seconds.

Freshman Alyssa Murray, back from a nine-month hiatus due to an anterior cruciate ligament injury, proved she is an offensive power. Murray notched two goals in her Syracuse debut and shows promise of even more improvement as the season wears on, Ladouceur said.

‘She’s only been playing the college game for a month, and that was the real test out there, and she passed it with flying colors. A-plus-plus-plus-plus-plus,’ Ladouceur said. ‘She was not only assisting, but she was scoring goals, and she was hustling back on defense. And no matter what happened, if she missed the net, she kept her head up and was working hard for it the next time.’

Murray and her fellow freshmen will get a chance to play in a much more structured way Sunday at Stanford. Tumolo said the first game’s experience will help them be more comfortable and join the veterans in leading the offense.

‘I think they did awesome,’ Tumolo said. ‘They definitely will show a lot more, though. I mean, it’s our first game. It’s their first game as a ‘Cuse player, so I think after this game they’ll be more relaxed.’

alguggen@syr.edu