A second-half rally by the women's lacrosse team put the program's second win within reach on Wednesday afternoon. But it was not to be, as Towson State's defense held on over the last 10 minutes to beat Duke, 10-8.
The game started well for the 1-4 women's lacrosse team. Duke's midfielder/attacker Amy Murnick had the first goal of the game barely over two minutes into the first half. Towson State was held scoreless for almost the first seven minutes.
Unfortunately for Duke, a Tiger goal by Amy Buck, assisted by Megan Drake, with 22:09 left began Towson State's dominance of the half. Buck and Drake would haunt the Blue Devils throughout the game, notching a combined four goals and four assists. Duke's only other goal of the half was scored by sophomore attacker Kristin Lonergan with nearly 14 minutes left to play. Towson State, on the other hand, controlled the ball and notched five more points before halftime.
Duke was also hounded by the referees, with the game interrupted frequently for fouls, out of bounds calls, and even yellow cards. Freshman midfielder/attacker Meghan McLaughlin was ejected from the game with 18 minutes left in the second half when she received her second yellow card. This hurt the Blue Devils' chances, because although McLaughlin was held scoreless, she was able to carry the ball down the field consistently throughout her playing time.
The combination of uncommonly cold, windy conditions and a four-point deficit might have been enough to cause other teams to throw in the towel. Fans on the sidelines began to talk about how much the team needed freshman Payton Black, who has not yet returned after completing the basketball season.
The Duke team, however, refused to give up. Although Towson State gained the first goal barely a minute into the period, Duke outscored the Tigers 6-4 in the second half. Murnick and Lonergan netted a goal each, and junior attacker Claire DiLorenzo nabbed two points midway through the half. Freshman Laura Rooklin and sophomore Heather Keeney each added a point for Duke.
Duke head coach Kerstin Kimel credits her team for a great comeback. She added that the players had difficulty in the first half knowing when to pass and when to keep the ball.
"In the second half," Kimel said, "the midfielders had the confidence to hold the ball... Towson State pulled all their defense on the attack, and we had a good, solid defense. I was really happy [with them]."
A large part of Duke's rally was due to fast breaks by the midfielders. Kimel did not expect this as a part of the team's game plan, because Towson State has many fast players.
"We didn't expect to be able to run with them," Kimel said.
Murnick was also pleased with the team's second half play. She argued that the team held on to their confidence during halftime, and that the halftime speech was really inspirational.
"We knew we could do it," Murnick said. "We thought we could do it. Our defense played really well."
The Blue Devils play again today at 3:30 p.m., when they will take on Dartmouth at the Duke Lacrosse Stadium. They look forward to the continual improvement due to a young, hardworking team.
"Each game we keep building," Murnick said. "We get better every game."
Get The Chronicle straight to your inbox
Signup for our weekly newsletter. Cancel at any time.