CHAPEL HILL, N.C.—After picking up two victories, two shutouts and nine goals—six of them coming from freshmen Taylor Racioppi and Kayla McCoy—the Blue Devils’ season could not have started on a more promising note.
Behind a combined three strikes from Racioppi and McCoy, Duke downed Weber State 4-0 in its second contest of the UNC Nike Classic contest Sunday at Fetzer Field. Racioppi broke the deadlock in the first half and McCoy poured in two more scores to give the Blue Devils their second lopsided win in three days.
“We scored nine goals in two games—we’ll take that anytime,” head coach Robbie Church said. “And defensively, we were solid. We’re getting better at recognizing when we want to press and we want to foul but our transition in defense has to get quicker. [Offensively] we’re still searching. We’re deep, so we’re still looking for our lineups. I like where we are.”
Duke (2-0) had chances to break the scoreless draw early in the first half by opening the field with sophomore forward Imani Dorsey on the right flank and junior captain Christina Gibbons on the left. But Wildcat defenders Kellyn Ashby and Marissa Cook always managed to block the Blue Devils’ low crosses. In the 13th minute, junior midfielder Toni Payne corralled a loose ball outside the box, dribbled past a defender and, when she had a clear sight on goal, powered a shot that missed the target by few inches.
Nine minutes later, Racioppi notched the first goal of the game and her third of the season. The Ocean Township, N.J., native sent a shot toward the net from about 25 yards out—normally a low-percentage chance—but the ball curled back toward the goal and surprised Weber State goalkeeper Nikki Pittman, who did not try to turn it away.
“I had the ball, looked up and I just went for it,” Racioppi said. “My teammates were making fun of me. I think I surprised them too.”
The Blue Devils could have doubled their advantage from outside the box three times in a 10-minutes span, but Pittman controlled the strikes from Payne, Gibbons and right defender Morgan Reid.
McCoy found the back of the net in the 37th minute after being set up by her teammates. Redshirt sophomore Malinda Allen crossed the ball from the right side of the pitch and redshirt junior midfielder Danielle Duhl connected on a header from the penalty spot. The shot was off-target but a Wildcat defender tried to stop it, leaving a bouncing ball only five yards from the goal. McCoy rolled the ball home with a soft header that Pittman could not punch away.
Duke outshot Weber State (0-2) 13-1 in the first half and went to the locker room with a commanding 2-0 advantage. Only four minutes into the second period, redshirt sophomore midfielder Cassie Pecht sent the ball into the top corner with her left foot to give the Blue Devils a 3-0 lead—the Mechanicsburg, Pa., native’s first goal since returning from a knee injury that has kept her sidelined for the past two seasons.
Although Racioppi and Payne each had another chance to add onto the lead, it was McCoy who sealed the victory with 10 minutes remaining, sneaking a shot past Weber State goalie Sydnie Brough from outside the box.
“In practices we work a lot on defense,” Racioppi said. “So a lot of this creativity that you’re seeing and these shots from the outside is natural for our players. Kayla ripped a beautiful shot and she has the technical ability to do it and she went for it. It’s awesome that we can put the ball on someone’s foot and something good is going to happen.”
The 4-0 victory against the Wildcats not only marked the second contest in which Duke scored at least four goals, but also its second straight shutout, after blanking Fresno State 5-0 in Friday’s opener.
The 4-0 victory against the Wildcats not only marked the second contest in which Duke scored at least four goals but also its second straight shutout, after blanking Fresno State 5-0 in Friday's opener.
“The biggest thing [in defense] is staying compact,” sophomore goalkeeper E.J. Proctor said. “This preseason we’ve been working on moving together, keeping our lines and not letting any second ball [beat us].”
The Blue Devils will have their first early-season test Friday in State College, Pa., as Church’s squad takes on No. 6 Penn State.
“[Penn State] is a great team and a great program,” Church said. “We’re looking forward to going up there. It’ll let us know where we stand at the national level.”
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