On a gray day at Koskinen Stadium, it was the bright future of the inexperienced Blue Devils’ attack shone through the clouds.
Behind a relentless offensive outburst, No. 4 Duke opened its season in convincing fashion with a 20-4 rout of Campbell 20-4 Thursday afternoon. The Blue Devils wasted little time getting on the scoreboard with a Maddy Acton goal just more than two minutes into the game, and never looked back, building up a 15-2 halftime edge before cruising in the second half.
Duke's attack did not let up after Acton’s goal, registered seven more goals in just the first 10 minutes of the game. Seven different players tallied multiple goals, highlighted by sophomore Kyra Harney’s three goals and four assists. Making her regular-season debut, freshman Olivia Jenner added a hat trick of her own.
“I thought our kids did a really good job right out of the gate just attacking, being aggressive, coming up with loose balls on the defensive end and clearing well,” Duke head coach Kerstin Kimel said. “We worked really hard knowing we’ve got some kids out right now to really focus on the team aspects of defense and being really fundamentally sound.”
Despite being without Preseason All-ACC nominee and star senior defender Claire Scarrone, Duke (1-0) shut down the Camel offense. With a heavy dose of Devon Russell, Maura Schwitter and Michelle Staggers, the Blue Devils limited the duo of Erica Hitch and Loren Day to only one goal. Last season, the pair terrorized defenses as the second-highest scoring tandem in the country, but they had no such luck Thursday.
As the game slowed down in the second half, both the Blue Devil bench and the home crowd exploded when Schwitter burst through the defense to rip her first career goal past Campbell goalkeeper Kylie Haarhoff. The junior gathered a pass from the draw and outran the Camel defense to get a clear shot on goal.
“I wasn’t expecting a goal to come. Sometimes when I get close to the goal I start shying away a little bit, but I had an open lane and my teammates were cheering my name,” Schwitter said. “There’s definitely something to be said for your team rushing after you after you score and hearing your goal song…It’s pretty surreal."
Even if the Campbell attackers managed a clear shot, they had to get it by one of the top goalkeepers in the nation in Kelsey Duryea, who saved six of the eight shots she faced in just less than 54 minutes between the pipes for Duke. The senior also came out of her crease on multiple occasions to intercept the Camels’ passes, calmly clearing the ball out of harm's way to start another offensive possession.
Duke's freshman class makes up more than 30 percent of its roster, with the 12 fresh faces expected to play a large role for one of the top teams in the nation. In the first game of the season, they combined to account for four goals and played strong defense.
The Blue Devils dominated in every major category, outplaying and out-hustling a veteran Campbell squad, as evidenced by a 26-15 advantage in ground balls.
The extra effort led to ample scoring opportunities for Duke, which capitalized on nearly every chance. In the pivotal first 10 minutes, the Blue Devils scored multiple goals after drawing penalties inside the eight-meter marker against the Camels (0-1).
The final score may serve as a confidence-booster with just two days to prepare for a matchup against another top-five team in No. 5 Northwestern. Back in the confines of Koskinen Stadium, the Blue Devils will have a chance to make an early-season statement Sunday.
“Northwestern’s a great team and we will certainly have our hands full because they did not graduate much,” Kimel said. “Northwestern’s always a team that has a few tricks up their sleeve, so we’re going to have to be ready for anything. I think [we'll try] to keep the focus on us and our fundamentals, so when we get out here on Sunday, we’re ready for anything.”
Get The Chronicle straight to your inbox
Signup for our weekly newsletter. Cancel at any time.