The women's soccer team heads into a pair of Atlantic Coast Conference matches this weekend, still searching for the answer to soccer's most fundamental question: What does it take to put the ball in the net?
The Blue Devils, after a weekend loss to Texas A&M and a scoreless tie with SMU, find themselves winless in their last five contests-the longest such streak in Duke history. A talented squad on paper, the Blue Devils have stumbled to a disappointing 6-8-2 record. Improving an offense that has managed just over one and a half goals per game is the primary concern as Duke prepares for weekend games with two ranked opponents-No. 11 Maryland and No. 20 Clemson.
The Blue Devils' performance in last weekend's Texas Challenge was indicative of a season of frustration. Duke outshot both Texas A&M and SMU by more than a two-to-one margin, but failed to score a single goal in either game. Thirty-two shots on the weekend without a goal has Coach Bill Hempen's squad perplexed and desperate.
"Without a doubt, we should have won those games," freshman midfielder Kim Hartshorne said. "We just couldn't put it away."
Putting the ball away has been easier said than done for the Blue Devils, who appear to be setting records for inefficiency in the offensive zone. On the season, Duke has outshot its opponents by a stunning total of 226-130. Despite that dominance, Duke has outscored its opponents by a minute 25-22 margin.
Hempen continues to try new combinations in search of a lineup that will provide some measure of consistency. In recent games, he has changed his team's formation from its customary 4-4-2 setup to a 4-3-3 alignment-hoping to spark some scoring with the added attacker. However, after the new attack failed to provide a goal, Hempen returned to the 4-4-2 for the remainder of the season.
Lineup changes have been plentiful, as well. Hartshorne and fellow freshman Kim Daws have both seen a significant increase in playing time in the midfield. Daws, who played sparingly in the Blue Devils' early-season contests, has come on strong of late, and played well enough to earn All-Tournament honors last weekend. Joining Daws on the All-Tournament squad was sophomore Kristy Whelchel, the Blue Devils' leading scorer on the season.
Duke's offensive woes this year have been made doubly difficult by one of the toughest schedules in school history. A season that started with a road game at perennial power North Carolina-the winningest team in NCAA history-has gotten no easier. Thirteen of the Blue Devils' 16 opponents thus far have been ranked at some point this year, and Duke has played four of the current top six teams in the country.
But if Duke is looking for a break, it is not going to get one now. Maryland (16-1-1 overall, 2-1-1 ACC) comes into Friday night's 7 p.m. matchup in College Park having suffered its only loss of the season Sunday at the hands of N.C. State. The Terrapins, who have been ranked as high as No. 4, appear to be back on track after a 4-0 shutout of Navy Tuesday night, and they will certainly be ready for Duke.
Maryland forward Emmy Harbo leads the ACC with 18 goals and continued her red-hot pace with her first career hat trick Tuesday. Stopping Harbo will be important for Duke, although cracking the Terp defense may be the bigger challenge. Maryland has allowed just 0.44 goals per game, and has been especially tough at home. Only once-Sunday's 2-0 loss to the Wolfpack-have the Terps allowed more than one goal at Ludwig Field.
When Duke returns home on Sunday to host the Clemson Tigers, it will be playing just its seventh home game of the year. The Tigers (11-4-1 overall, 2-2-1 ACC) have also been ranked in the top ten this season, but slipped to No. 20 after a 1-0 loss to Florida State.
Regardless of the opponents, Duke's approach has not changed. The Blue Devils have tried everything from team meetings to extra practices in the hopes that they can find some scoring punch, but thus far their efforts have been in vain.
"We just have to work harder," Hartshorne said. "We need to take pride in how we play, [and] show more intensity. Everyone is trying to stay upbeat and focus."
But for a team that is averaging over nine shots for each goal scored, a bit of luck might be more helpful than anything.
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