It was the tipping point in Syracuse lacrosse’s return to prominence, and John Galloway felt unsettled.

The Orange was trying desperately to mount a comeback against then-No. 4 Johns Hopkins in Baltimore, but couldn’t quite break through to take a lead.

The jury was still out on whether or not Syracuse could return to its roots and climb back to the top of the lacrosse pantheon. The team was 3-1, but hadn’t beaten a top 10 team yet. A come-from-behind win at Hopkins would do the trick.

Galloway, the SU freshman goalie, and his defense were struggling to hold off the Hopkins attack. Every time the Orange would pull within one, Hopkins would rally to open the game back up.

That’s when defenseman and senior captain Evan Brady, seeing Galloway getting down on himself, decided to give the young netminder some encouragement.

‘Listen, it’s your spot,’ Brady said to him after a goal. ‘This is you. It’s all you. You’ve got this.’

Galloway relaxed. The momentum shifted. After giving up 13 through three-and-a half quarters, the Galloway-led defense shut down the Hopkins attack, holding it scoreless throughout the final eight minutes of the game.

And after Steven Brooks scored the game-winner on a long bounce shot, the Orange players paraded off the field with shouts of ‘We’re back!’ Syracuse had proven 2007 was over with its first win at Hopkins in 10 years.

Remembering that game three days ago, Galloway said Brady calmed him down and ultimately inspired a turning point in his season.

‘For a senior captain to come up to a freshman and say something like that really helped me out,’ Galloway said.

The Hopkins win was a turning point for Syracuse, too. The Orange, now 9-1, has not won a game by fewer than five goals since the March 15 win as it cruises toward the NCAA tournament.

It’s been a series of small steps for the young goalie still learning the ropes. But with the regular season winding down and four games left before the tournament, Galloway is finally at ease.

That stability has helped the freshman, who has played all but 49 minutes this season, relax and settle into his spot in the goalmouth. And that, Galloway said, is paramount for his position.

‘Being a goalie, you have to be calm and know what the assignments are and know how you’re going to control your defense,’ Galloway said. ‘As a goalie, you have to make sure that your defense is calm too.’

Galloway has garnered high praise among his teammates and coaches, despite the fact that his numbers aren’t blowing anyone away. Through Sunday, Galloway had a 54.9 save percentage, 32nd best in the nation. His goals against average stands at 7.66, good enough for 17th in the nation.

He isn’t happy with those, and Galloway said he’s looking to improve them on a game-by-game basis. But with the Orange at 9-1, any questionable play has been overlooked.

‘I don’t think anybody really looks at the numbers too much,’ Galloway said. ‘If we’re winning, that’s all that matters. I don’t care what people say about me as long as our record keeps improving and we go on to the playoffs.’

The preseason was littered with questions regarding the defense, after it gave up more than 11 goals per game in 2007, during Syracuse’s first losing season in 30 years. Galloway was in the center of the biggest dilemma.

Head coach John Desko spent the offseason gauging whether to go with the freshman or Pete Coluccini, the starter from 2007. Practices became something of a mini-tryout, as the pressure mounted for Galloway and his fellow goalies as the season approached.

‘Every time he was in the cage during practice, he felt like he had to prove himself,’ Syracuse midfielder Jovan Miller said. ‘He had to do something that would kind of make him stick out from the rest. … John had a lot of pressure on him because he just wanted to do something great every time he got in the cage.’

The goalie controversy dragged out into the regular season, as Galloway and Coluccini split time in the opener against Villanova, before Galloway played the full game in an 8-7 win over Army in the second week.

But there was no time to relax. Syracuse went through a period of four games decided by a total of four goals with a total of four overtime periods, all against top-12 teams, but came out with three wins.

‘It’s tough,’ Galloway said two weeks ago. ‘It’s really stressful right now. I didn’t realize it was going to be this tough from week to week. But that’s what you play for, overtime games and one-goal games.’

Syracuse’s collective heartbeat has simmered since then, as it has been able to cruise through its last five games, including a 15-8 win over No. 5 Cornell Tuesday. Galloway and the Orange can settle into the notion that it will return to the tournament after missing it last year.

It’s familiar territory for Galloway. While at nearby West Genesee High School, the lacrosse breeding ground and feeder school for Syracuse, Galloway’s teams went 63-6 and played in three state championships, winning the title in 2005.

‘I was fortunate enough to go to a high school where we did have a pretty good success rate,’ Galloway said. ‘We had great coaching, and I think that’s the same thing that’s carried over here. It’s spilled over. To be able to be winning games like we have been, it’s getting back to normal.’

Galloway said he has been watching more film lately, something that makes him feel more comfortable and prepared heading into matchups. Desko has seen the intangibles like that and uses it to gauge Galloway’s progression throughout the year.

‘I think he’s just become more comfortable in defensive situations, what we’re doing out there and beginning to understand other Division I players now,’ Desko said. ‘I think he’s doing a good job just getting comfortable playing with the defense now.’

His increased comfort level behind the back line has led him into a leadership role. It’s a job that Brady, who initiated it all with that mid-game advice, said is crucial for a young goalie to do.

‘He’s grown up a lot,’ Brady said. ‘It’s tough coming in as a freshman when you’ve got two senior captain defensemen to take control, but that’s what a goalie has to do.’

kbaustin@syr.edu

Published on April 9, 2008 at 12:00 pm