Syracuse’s matchup with Siena ruled no contest due to rain
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No. 7 Syracuse’s (3-0-2, 0-0-1 Atlantic Coast Conference) game against Siena (0-4-0, 0-0-0 Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference) was ruled a no contest due to heavy rain. The Orange and Saints were tied 0-0 in the 56th minute when it was decided to end the match. Since the game didn’t reach the 70th minute, it will not count toward SU’s record.
Syracuse couldn’t break down Siena’s defense throughout the game. In the opening minute, the Orange created a promising chance down the left side. Felipe D’Agostini combined with Nate Edwards for a give-and-go. D’Agostini got to the endline and fired a ball across toward Lorenzo Boselli, but Thomas Sams cleared the danger.
Despite coming in winless, Siena didn’t sit back. In the third minute, Syracuse looked to lock the Saints deep in their own defensive third. Siena played out of the Orange’s press, springing an attack down the left side.
Carl Melin dribbled into space with Gabriel Mikina backing up to position himself for a tackle. Melin found Ben Biton 25 yards out, who passed to Zach Gardner. But Gardner’s low shot was saved by Jason Smith and Olu Oyegunle cleared the ball.
The Orange pressed high up the field but Siena was comfortable when playing out from the back. On a couple of occasions, D’Agostini intercepted passes in the midfield from Siena goalie Bennet Glinder. Still, D’Agostini was indecisive when getting to the final third, passing the ball off instead of shooting.
In the 22nd minute, Boselli’s headed a corner but it sailed just over the bar. Syracuse didn’t have many better chances from distance either.
Josh Belluz came closest to scoring in the 40th minute. Belluz found himself in space from 30 yards out, picking his head up and driving a ball that skidded across the wet ground. Glinder tipped it wide.
In the limited time of the second half, the ball slowed down because of how saturated the field was. Syracuse played through Edwards, who tried his best to drive at Siena’s defense. He nearly found the opener in the 49th minute, curling the ball to the far post. Glinder made another save.
The Orange finished with nine shots but only two on target. Siena had three shots that were all on target. It’s the first time all season that one of Syracuse’s opponents had more shots on target than it.