August brought plenty of interesting concepts but demanded the Titans tinker and work out the kinks before those concepts in practice became successful on the pitch. Defensively, there’s been a learning curve through two shutout losses and five total following a 2-1 home loss to Farmington in Tuesday’s region opener.

Answering that fault, Syracuse, putting in three first-half goals via Brianna Brown, Hannah NeVille and Abby Risley, knocked off undefeated Davis 3-2 on Thursday for their fourth road win and first of the region calendar.

“They’ve had things going their way and we haven’t had things going our way,” Steiner said. “We played really well against Farmington. We wanted to build on that and we put some in the back of the net today that we didn’t against Farmington.”

Syracuse, improving to 6-5 overall (1-1 Region 1) on Thursday afternoon, now has four consecutive wins over the Darts (8-1, 0-1) dating back to a 2025 season stamped by a 2-1 Titan victory in the 6A state semifinals. Together, Steiner and Syracuse chased down the program’s first-ever state title since the school opened its doors in 2007.

“They have our number right now,” Davis High coach Dillon Richens said. “We’ve just gotta put away our chances. I think it’s easy to get complacent and expect things to happen the way you’re used to having them happen. It’s easy to fall in some bad habits, but it’s a good reminder that we’ve got to put our right foot forward, outwork them, win our individual battles and just move on to the next one.”

Syracuse is where Hannah NeVille, a former Davis Dart and the younger sister of Davis alum Lydia NeVille (who’s now at Snow College) ended up this school year.

Her decision to transfer boiled down to fit, Hannah said, and her first-half score on Thursday suggests she’s immersing herself in Steiner’s project quite well.

“I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else,” Hannah Neville said. “Jason’s a phenomenal coach, along with Ryan, and I feel very blessed to be where I’m at.”

Neville followed up Brown’s match-opening goal, arriving in the first 10-minute block of the match, as the Titans claimed the first lead of a warm afternoon match at Angel Street Park.

Seizing a corner kick, Davis senior Ellie Stowers positioned herself for a header goal shortly after Syracuse’s initial goal.

Abby Rizley, answering the Stowers goal before the end of the first half, handed Syracuse the lead just before halftime. A hand ball set Davis captain Reial Phonsavath with a sure-thing penalty kick, but the Titan defense, led by junior goalkeeper Whitney Cella, clung to its narrow lead and re-entered the win column.

Catching the attention of her coach, Syracuse senior Sophie Martin, stepping up for a major stop in the late minutes of the match, used her full body to deny Davis a late look at the net. Their county neighbors always bring out the most in his girls, Steiner said, and he wouldn’t have the rivalry any other way.

“We should always be up for Davis,” Steiner said. “They’re an awesome team, they’re undefeated and they’ve done some really good things, so it’s always a battle. They probably had it out for us because of last year. … It’s always a battle.”

Next, Syracuse enjoys a weeklong break before hosting West Field next Thursday, Sept. 10. Similarly, Davis enjoys some time off, but looks to protect its 8-1 start at Layton next Thursday.

Connect with Standard-Examiner sports reporter Conner Becker via email at cbecker@standard.net, X @ctbecker and Instagram @standardexaminersports.