Sydney Brackett grew restless. Syracuse had totaled 10 shots by the 61st minute, four of which were by Brackett. Yet none had squeezed past Buffalo goalkeeper Laura Dougall. By all accounts, it appeared that Syracuse was headed toward overtime and possibly a draw.

Brackett’s demeanor suddenly changed. She appeared more aggressive in fighting for loose balls. She initiated more runs along the wing in hopes of sneaking behind the defender.

After another missed opportunity that made Brackett clap her hands together, she dashed down the left sideline and received a pass from Eva Gordon. As Brackett approached the end line, she noticed Opal Curless running toward goal and slid Curless the ball. The latter’s shot was deflected and Sheridan Street booted it in. It was goal that proved decisive in holding off Buffalo in SU’s 2-0 win over Buffalo Thursday night.

“I live for the through balls,” Brackett said. “It’s like you shoot out of a cannon.”

The connection between Gordon and Brackett was strong throughout. At many points when Gordon received the ball, she would immediately look in Brackett’s direction for a potential through ball.

Brackett leads the Orange (7-1-1) with 26 shots on the season. She was not able to score her second goal of the season against Buffalo (3-3-2), but she was an active threat for SU throughout.

“I know what she’ll do when she gets the ball and she knows what I’ll do,” Gordon said. “That connection will only get stronger as the season goes on.”

In the seventh minute, Sheridan Street tapped a through ball past a Buffalo defender, which left Brackett with a one-on-one opportunity. She narrowly fired the ball wide left. Until Street capitalized in the second half, Syracuse was woeful at finishing. By game’s end, SU had taken 21 shots.

“When things don’t go well I’m obviously going to get mad at myself,” Brackett said. “But I’ve told myself, all you can do from here is get better.”

SU head coach Phil Wheddon raved about Brackett’s ability to place herself in goal-scoring situations. He recruited Brackett as a goal-scorer but expects her to turn it around soon.

“When you make a great play and the goalkeeper comes up with a big save, it’s definitely frusturating,” Wheddon said. “I just told her, ‘be patient it’ll come.’”

After Courtney Brosnan punched out a corner kick in the 89th minute, Alana O’Neill had a one-on-one with Buffalo goalkeeper Dougall. Across from her, Brackett galloped toward the net. O’Neill opted to take the shot and finished it with ease.

SU came away with the win. But inconsistent finishing from Brackett and others may not prove as forgiving entering into ACC conference play.

“Every game counts from here on out so we need to be at our best,” Wheddon said. “We expect her to put it in the back of the net. She’s her worst critic so we’ve tried to stay positive with her because we expect big things from her going forward.”

Published on September 16, 2016 at 2:06 am

Contact Byron: brtollef@syr.edu