Since being named Syracuse’s starting goalkeeper prior to this season, sophomore Jess Jecko has stuck to a detailed pregame ritual.

She can barely keep a straight face as she goes through all the necessary steps.

“I have a certain headband I have to wear on game day, and assistant coach Allan (Law) always has to give me a high five before the game,” Jecko said. “And Adrian Chambers, I have to do a certain handshake with her.”

Then she paused and burst into laughter as she remembered another important part.

“Oh and coffee. I need my coffee before games,” she said.

Just as she needs her caffeine to stay in focus, the No. 3 Orange (10-1, 1-1 Atlantic Coast) needs Jecko to be at her best when it travels to Durham, N.C., for a showdown with No. 7 Duke (10-2, 2-0 Atlantic Coast) on Friday at 6 p.m. Led by redshirt sophomore goalie Lauren Blazing, the Blue Devils enter the contest with the No. 5 scoring defense in the country. They have allowed only 1.12 goals per game this season.

That means that Friday’s clash may very well turn into an old-fashioned goalie duel. However, Jecko doesn’t mind. She’s ready to take the field with guns blazing.

“I like the pressure of a tough game. It keeps me awake, keeps me on my toes,” Jecko said. “Every ball that’s shot at me, I’m going to do my best to save it.”

For the most part, she has kept that promise during the first half of the season. The former Sauquoit Valley (N.Y.) High School star has already notched three shutouts and boasts a goals-against average of 1.69, good enough to place her at No. 15 in the nation.

But more important than her acrobatics between the pipes has been her vocal leadership on the field.

Senior back Laura Hahnefeldt said Jecko isn’t afraid to take charge when the time is right.

“She has really stepped up and gained a lot of confidence over the summer,” Hahnefeldt said. “She’s become a really big talker that keeps us calm on the defense.”

But the Clinton, N.Y., native was not always that assertive. In fact, Jecko is the first to admit that she struggled to find her voice as a freshman.

“I was very nervous, didn’t really know what I was doing and just trying to adapt to this style of hockey,” she said.

Head coach Ange Bradley said the low point for Jecko came this past winter when she failed a fitness test at some point in January or February.

The team was scheduled to make a trip days later. It did, but Jecko was not allowed to be a part of the experience.

That was when everything began to change.

“It’s what she did after that failure that gives me the confidence to believe in her every day,” Bradley said. “Jess’ preparation all summer and the work she put in.”

Jecko understandably worked on her strength and conditioning during those months, but she also improved in a couple of other key areas.

“My leadership. And confidence is probably the biggest area that I’ve grown in up to now,” she said.

Still, Jecko’s transformation isn’t complete. She said she wants to drop her goals-against average below one by the end of the season and also increase her save percentage.

As for Friday, she’ll need more than a coffee buzz to shut down the Blue Devils. In her eyes, it will take a complete defensive performance from the entire team to put the first ACC road victory in the Orange record books.

“Not letting them inside the circle is going to be important for us,” Jecko said. “I really think that they execute two-on-ones nicely, but organizing the defense early will hopefully shut their offense down.”

Published on October 9, 2013 at 11:21 pm

Contact Tyler: tfpiccot@syr.edu