UM Women soccer’s 3-0 loss to Florida State University last Friday saw the Hurricanes left winless in the opening five fixtures of their 2025 ACC Campaign.
However, this Saturday’s game against last-place Syracuse provides a more-than-promising opportunity for the Hurricanes to grab their first ACC win of the season.
The fact that Syracuse and Miami are level in the ACC on one point, with both having tied against SMU, could suggest that they are of the same standard. However, Syracuse has played three home games in contrast to Miami’s one, and currently ride a five-game losing streak. The Hurricanes have shown strong performances against difficult sides in Louisville and Duke, while Syracuse was convincingly beaten by every tough team they have faced.
Most of all, Miami has bright sparks, namely Teegan Melenhorst and Ciara Alarcon, that give the Hurricanes the technical edge needed to win this game.
Syracuse was dominated in all of their last three fixtures, having been outshot 16-5 by California, 36-5 by Stanford, and 31-10 by Clemson.
Meanwhile, Miami was defensively sound against Duke and Louisville, showing the capability to put in industrious performances against highly-rated teams. Still, Miami must improve at defending cutbacks, as in every one of Miami’s competitive fixtures, there has been a lapse in focus in marking second-runners when the opposition squares the ball from out wide. While Syracuse are unlikely to punish Miami to the same extent that the attacking powerhouses of FSU and Wake Forest did, the Hurricanes need to work on this issue if they wish to have a strong second half of the season.
Furthermore, Miami should emphasize funneling attacks through Melenhorst and Alarcon. Prior games against Wake Forest and Duke required structural solidity and quantitative overloads to try and pinch results against these highly organized and technical sides. Conversely, Syracuse lacks the same organization and individual ability as previous opponents, making them less threatening offensively and weaker defensively. Therefore, placing onus on utilizing the qualitative superiority of the Canes’ midfield will be effective in breaking down Syracuse’s 4-5-1 formation.
Most of all, there must be a focus on finding the Hurricanes’ midfielders in the right areas, as Miami’s insufficiency in getting the ball in and around the penalty area has resulted in lower quality chances. The 4-4-2 diamond Masuhr has recently deployed works at getting Melenhorst on the edge of the box, but this narrow formation sometimes restricts Miami’s ability to stretch the opposition’s defense, reducing the faculty for the ’Canes deeper midfielders to play. Therefore, an adaptation to a 4-2-3-1 could potentially solve this issue while keeping Melenhorst in her best role.
With this idea in mind, Miami could set up as follows:
Defense – #0 Bredel, #14 Maxwell, #4 Morella, #2 Simpson, #25 Kaye
Midfield – #13 Nicholson, #8 Alarcon, #12 Melenhorst
Attack – #7 Hood, #11 Akguel, #15 Serlenga
In this setup, Nicholson would be the primary defensive outlet while Alarcon would occupy the more progressive role in the double pivot, aiding movement of the ball up to Melenhorst in the #10 role. Miami’s recent goal drought has produced the belief that some changes in attack should occur, but rolling substitution rules mean that this frontline would be subject to change throughout the game.
Ultimately, this game is firmly in Miami’s hands. The Hurricanes have benefitted from over a week of preparation, and the home advantage of playing at Cobb Stadium will only add to the team’s growing sense of impetus to win on Oct. 11th, at 7:00 p.m.
