Syracuse head coach John Desko had less than two days to prepare for the breaking news that midfielder Pat Perritt would leave the Syracuse men’s lacrosse team because of ‘an ongoing medical condition.’

Luckily for Desko, he had the personnel to replace him.

Attackman Greg Niewieroski took Perritt’s place in the starting lineup in Sunday’s 22-9 win over Rutgers. Niewieroski started at attack, while Dan Hardy moved from his starting attack spot to midfield. Niewieroski scored three goals, as a result, using his finishing ability as a threat for the Orange inside.

‘I think Greg has been playing very well in practice,’ Desko said. ‘He’s been doing a good job with the ball behind the cage and inside. I thought against Cornell he scored about everywhere he could score.’

It was a more effective strategy than when Desko started Niewieroski on the first midfield line following Perritt’s suspension after being charged for disorderly conduct and resisting arrest on March 11. But Niewieroski scored only one goal against Binghamton, which was on an unsettled situation and had little to do with his position.

Niewieroski’s performance the past two games – five goals against Cornell and the hat trick on Sunday – shows he’s more suited at attack.

‘He’s not getting these goals off of flukes or anything,’ SU attackman Kenny Nims said. ‘He’s making great plays. He finished the ball like he knows he can.’

With Hardy on the midfield, SU couldn’t use him on the wing like the Orange does with Perritt. But Hardy played at midfield last year after Greg Rommel and Steven Brooks fell to injury. He used his bulky frame to create matchup players for Rutgers.

‘He really sensed the blood in the water and went right to the goal and scored,’ Desko said. ‘The outside shot, the physical size difference and the ability to go behind, too – we probably don’t use Pat behind the goal too much.’

Hardy showed off his ability to come from around the cage when he scored at the 4:30 mark in the first quarter. Meanwhile, Niewieroski’s finishes at the cage happened because he moved to allow himself to be unnoticed at the goal.

Niewieroski’s signature move is similar to that of SU men’s basketball star Demetris Nichols – moving off the ball, and then when he’s open all he has to do is convert on the open shot.

That’s possible because his eyes observe what’s happening on the field.

Niewieroski showcased this when he came around the cage and found Nims for the score, making SU’s lead to 4-2 with 7:02 left in the first quarter.

Minutes later, goalie Pete Coluccini cleared to midfielder Steven Brooks at midfield, who sprinted down the left side of the field. Meanwhile, Niewieroski creeped near the right side of the cage. Brooks found him open, and Niewieroski laid it in at the 2:16 mark.

In the second quarter, Niewieroski sprinted from the sideline to the top of the crease. He drove past two Scarlet Knight defensemen and dove in for the goal with 13:25 left.

Niewieroski continued to show his hard work when he caught a rebound off of a missed shot from Greg Rommel. His rebound propelled Syracuse to pass the ball around until Rommel nailed a sidewinder with 11:25 left in the second period.

‘Our team offense played real well,’ Niewieroski said. ‘We stretched them out and attacked them well.’

SU’s attacking ultimately allowed Niewieroski to continue to creep near the cage. It helps when he had other teammates who became worthy options. Nims and freshman attackman Mike MacDonald both scored four goals while eight other SU players tallied at least a goal.

Desko even joked the success from Niewieroski, Nims and Brendan Loftus – all from Watertown – happened because it was snowing hard.

In Niewieroski’s case, the success happened because he works hard in practice. Desko and Nims both observed he’s the one who puts in the most effort leading up to game day. That’s why shuffling the lineup in such short notice didn’t prove to be too detrimental.

‘Guys rose to the occasion,’ Desko said. ‘It’s the kind of thing that could affect the team in a negative way, and these guys came out and made up the difference for him.’

Published on April 14, 2007 at 12:00 pm