Blue Devils look for third straight over UNC

The Blue Devils will try to maintain their recent dominance over North Carolina when the Tar Heels come to Koskinen Stadium for a Tobacco Road showdown Friday night at 5 p.m.

Duke defeated North Carolina handily by a score of 14-9 last season, its ninth victory in the last 10 games between the two teams. The No. 14 Blue Devils (4-3, 0-1 in the ACC) have gotten off to a slow start this season, though. The team has gone only 1-3 against ranked opponents so far, while the No. 12 Tar Heels (5-2, 0-0) have had early season success, winning 2-of-3 matchups with ranked competition.

Duke has scored just 10.4 goals per game this season—ranking the team last in the ACC—despite sophomore Josh Dionne’s team-leading 15 goals. The Blue Devils have also had issues converting on man-up situations, scoring just four goals with the extra attacker on 27 attempts, a 14.8 percent success rate.

A goalie carousel of junior Dan Wigrizer, sophomore Mike Rock and freshman Kyle Turri still remains unresolved, with each of the three netminders making a start in the team’s last three contests. Wigrizer came into the season as the team’s top goaltender, but early mishaps and defensive woes have created an open competition.

In contrast, North Carolina is anchored on the defensive end by goalie Steven Rastivo, who made 16 saves—allowing just eight goals—in the Tar Heels’ win over then-No. 14 Princeton, earning ACC defensive player of the week honors. The junior ranks second in the conference with 9.7 saves per game.

North Carolina also sports a balanced offensive attack, with seven different players registering six goals or more this season. A total of 21 Tar Heels have found the back of the net this year, compared to just 13 for Duke. Marcus Holman has carried the load offensively for North Carolina, leading the team with 11 goals. The attackman also serves as the team’s primary facilitator, having registered a team-high nine assists.

Duke will look to use a supportive home crowd to its advantage. The Blue Devils are a perfect 4-0 at Koskinen Stadium this season, but are winless on the road. Duke has put forth its four highest scoring outputs of the year when playing in front of its home crowd.

—from staff reports