It was strength meets technicality. It was 2008 meets 2009. It was Megan Bellingham meets Tina Romagnuolo.

It was a goal shared by two goal scorers. And it was the first time in the two years that Syracuse’s leading scorers’ from 2008 and 2009 had donned Orange together. The first time they had connected. Finally.

With two minutes remaining in SU’s third game of the season versus Lehigh on Aug. 27, and with the Orange trailing by a goal, the senior forward Bellingham sailed a cross into the box where the sophomore attacking midfielder Romagnuolo headed it past Lehigh goalkeeper Lauren Mains. The goal put the Orange on the scoreboard for the first time all season and prevented SU from losing its second game of the season.

The much practiced and expected celebration ensued.

‘It is just a great thing that they are very different, but I think they read each other well and play well together,’ SU assistant coach Abby Crumpton said. ‘I think they combine well together. It’s been great because Tina is fairly new, and for them to mesh so quickly, it is good for us.’

Yes, there were the hundreds of practices in which the two had partaken together in the past two years. During those, there were a bevy of goals. But for these two attacking forces — the premier goal scorers for Syracuse women’s soccer — this was it. This one counted. And with the goal coming two minutes prior to the end of regulation, it helped SU to a 1-1 tie with Lehigh.

But it was at least one year too late. Perhaps two. In 2010, though, everything for the Orange hinges on it.

‘I think they are transferring a lot of attention from the opposition,’ SU head coach Phil Wheddon said. ‘I think that leaves other people unattended.’

Heading into the 2009 season, it appeared as if everything for the team hinged on Bellingham. She was the returning goal scoring leader with 17 points and eight goals in 2008. There was the newcomer Romagnuolo, who had redshirted in 2008 because of a commitment to the Canadian national team. Everyone expected she would soon become just like Bellingham.

But what Bellingham, Romagnuolo and Wheddon couldn’t expect was everything actually hinged on a hinge of Bellingham herself. The joints in her knees, to be exact.

As a result, Bellingham would miss the remainder of the 2009 season with sore knees she only described as ‘wear and tear.’ The knees were so bad that after playing in just two games alongside Romagnuolo, Bellingham couldn’t complete a single practice.

Technically, those first two games were the first times Bellingham met Romagnuolo in a real game. But it was at a time when Bellingham was still everything. She assisted Romagnuolo’s first career goal against St. Bonaventure.

It was before the injury. It was before Romagnuolo became everything. For one year, at least.

‘It felt kind of good to be a leader, even though I was only a freshman,’ Romagnuolo said.

For the remaining 17 games, Bellingham got the chance to see what the future of the program looked like. Bellingham saw the then-freshman Romagnuolo score nine of SU’s 13 goals.

But Bellingham knew the future for both Romagnuolo and herself would include the eventual one year together after the medical redshirt Bellingham received last season. So she was determined to make it.

‘I think always coming off an injury is tough because, pretty much, you are working from ground zero back up to 100 percent,’ Bellingham said. ‘For me, it was just a day-by-day process, and I just wanted to come back and just be as right as I was to contribute this season.’

When Bellingham went down, Romagnuolo was called upon to be a leader for the team, a tall task for an incoming freshman. But for Romagnuolo, it was a time to gain respect from her teammates.

She used her national-team experience to find her niche on the team. Even if it was a niche she was rushed into. She was just that skilled.

The skill was there. Then came the collegiate experience — the difficult 2-8-1 conference record after Bellingham went down. It was experience she meshed with her previous international lessons learned.

‘Experience, leadership and also just knowing how to control the game and the tempo of the game,’ Romagnuolo said of the responsibilities she learned from her time spent on the national team. ‘Just training hard every day in practice and trying to get people to do the same.’

Now Romagnuolo is meshing all she has learned with all Bellingham brings to the table. And they have combined to become a successful attacking combination for the Orange this season.

For Crumpton, there has been nothing better than watching two double-digit scorers join each other on the same field. The meeting is something she and Wheddon have been yearning for after what seems like an eternity.

‘I think it’s great, I think they complement each other really well,’ Crumpton said. ‘Both bring different things to the table, and we need them both. I think that it’s good because it throws off other teams that we don’t have three of the same kind of player in the attack.’

The much-planned attacking tandem has finally been let loose this season. Between the two, they have scored six goals and had three assists. Bellingham leads the team in points, while Romagnuolo is third.

Coming into the season, nobody knew for sure how Bellingham and Romagnuolo were going to coexist in the offensive third. And although they have clearly diverse skill sets, the variance has enabled the pair to mesh well for Syracuse this season. For Bellingham, Romagnuolo is the perfect complement.

‘She works so hard all the time,’ Bellingham said. ‘I don’t think she ever stops running. It’s just great to have a player that is pretty much my polar opposite. She’s fast, does great runs off the ball, and she’s always a good target to find and always has the mentality to get a goal.’

But both players have talents that have enabled them to become the go-to players on the field this season. The tandem has used these strengths to expose defenses all season long.

Crumpton credited Bellingham with being one of the strongest players on the team, while applauding Romagnuolo’s technique with the ball. These strengths have not only brought the players’ success, but have also enabled the Orange to become a stronger team this season.

Over the past two years, scoring from any source outside Bellingham and Romagnuolo was virtually nonexistent. This season, there are already four players who have amassed five points for the Orange. Wheddon sees the two on the field as an opportunity to draw attention away from other role players.

‘We’ve seen a lot more different people scoring,’ Wheddon said.

Junior midfielder Taylor Chamberlain has had the opportunity to play with each player in her career at SU. Chamberlain has finally had the opportunity to see her midfield success increase this season with the addition of Bellingham into the lineup. The two have become apparent scoring outlets for all Syracuse players.

‘It’s great always having options and knowing that something is going to come of your hard work,’ Chamberlain said. ‘It’s nice to know that your teammates are going to support you, just as you are going to support them.’

For Bellingham, it is not about having two prolific scorers in the front line, but rather the progress the program is making to have more talent all over the field. Romagnuolo is just one of the younger players who have stepped into a successful role for the Orange.

And if this season is any indication, Syracuse is going to find talent in the future.

When someone other than these two becomes everything. Even if the program as a whole doesn’t have to jostle with injuries and confront a delayed start.

Even if the meeting comes to fruition as planned.

Said Bellingham: ‘Having these young players step into leadership roles just coming into, like, sophomore year, it’s been really exciting to watch. I can’t wait to see where it goes in the future.’

adtredin@syr.edu

Published on September 28, 2010 at 12:00 pm