Georgetown has not needed any help piling on the goals as of late – the Hoyas have 11 in their last three games – but a porous defense is quickly becoming a thorn in Georgetown’s side.

Inconsistency has been the theme for Georgetown field hockey, as the Hoyas lost Sunday at Syracuse, 5-3, in their first-ever Big East road game. Trailing 1-0 at halftime, the Orange (6-6, 2-1) burst into the second half with three goals in the first 10 minutes and never looked back. Georgetown’s (4-6, 0-2) offense delivered three second-half goals for the third-straight game, but its defense simply couldn’t stop the prolific Syracuse attack.

“If we can tighten up the defensive end and play disciplined defense, like we have at some points in the season, we’ll be a good team,” Head Coach Laurie Carroll said.

As for the first half, the Hoyas’ solid play was welcomed by all, as the team had faced difficulties all season with slow starts.

“In the first half, we really stuck to our game plan and executed the press flawlessly,” Carroll said.

Junior defender Lauren Sheets delivered two goals, both on penalty strokes, and freshman forward Chelsea Aiken added her third goal of the season. The continued strong play of Aiken, fellow freshman forward Willemijn Wijsman and sophomore midfielder Maggie Farrand has ignited the offense over the past three games. The problem that plagued the Hoyas on Sunday was their inability to piece together each aspect of the game necessary to come out with a big win.

“Our attackers continued to create opportunities and the forwards worked so hard, ran a great press and created great corners and some great shots,” Carroll said. “We’ve scored three goals in the last three second halves; if we can play some more disciplined defense, we’ll win some games.

Carroll’s stressing of defensive responsibilities is important to the team’s progress. Considering that Syracuse outshot Georgetown 17-5 and took 11 penalty corners to Georgetown’s six, the Hoyas kept the game close. Georgetown’s offense has turned into a weapon, as the Hoyas are able to climb back into games in the blink of an eye behind the up-tempo play of their young forwards.

“Our ability to repossess the ball and our desire.is great,” Carroll said. “Our attack is doing a great job of trying to make things happen and create opportunities.”

Though the defense as a unit allowed too many breakaways and shots, the play of Sheets was a strong point. Her leadership has been invaluable throughout the season, and the defense will need her to stop the torrent of goals.

“Lauren Sheets was just in a zone. She played well from start to finish,” Carroll said. “The road trip was a great experience, but we’re disappointed because we wanted to bring Georgetown back a win.”

With another conference road game Friday night at Rutgers, the Hoyas just might have the potential, and the desire, to win their first Big East game. All that is left is putting it all together.

Play against Rutgers is set to begin at 7:30 p.m. in Piscataway, N.J.