Syracuse Women's Lacrosse Faces Tough 2024 Schedule, Starting With Defending National Champs in Season Opener

The Orange is ranked fifth in the preseason poll.

The Syracuse women's lacrosse team will face Northwestern, the defending national champions, in Evanston to open up their 2024 season. Last season, the Wildcats defeated the Boston College Eagles in the national championship. The Orange fell to the Eagles in the semifinals 8-7. During the 2023 regular season, the Orange beat ranked #4 Northwestern 16-15. Northwestern finished with a 21-1 record and their only loss was against Syracuse at the JMA Wireless Dome for the home opener.

The Orange announced their 2024 schedule in early December. It is safe to say this will be a challenging season as the Orange have a few tough stretches in their schedule. Out of their 16 games, 10 of the teams finished in the top 20 last year. These teams include: Northwestern, Army, Maryland, Notre Dame, Stony Brook, North Carolina, UAlbany, Virginia, Loyola Maryland, and Boston College. The remaining six teams they will face include: Duke, Virginia Tech, Louisville, Cornell, Pittsburgh, and Clemson. Every matchup the Orange face this season will be competitive as each team has historically strong reputations.

The first four games in the 2024 season will be a tough test. These games include Northwestern, Army, Maryland, and Notre Dame. Last season Northwestern finished number one, Army at 16, Maryland at 11, and Notre Dame at eight. Two of these games are away and two will be played at the JMA Wireless Dome. This is the first time in program history where Syracuse will meet Army. Last time Syracuse faced Maryland, the Orange won 20-11. Syracuse also faced the Fighting Irish last season where they won 15-7. Syracuse will end their regular season schedule with three important ACC matchups against Pittsburgh, Clemson, and Boston College.

The ACC has recently expanded women's lacrosse as Clemson announced they were adding a program in 2021 and Pittsburgh in 2018. This will only be the second time in program history that the Orange face the Clemson Tigers. Last season they defeated the Tigers 19-10 and Pittsburgh 16-4. USA lacrosse announced the Orange sit at fifth in the preseason ranking. The Orange are set to kick off their 2024 season on Feb 10. 

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