For the field hockey team, it's dZj^ vu all over again.
Today at 2:00 p.m. at the East Campus Turf Fields, No. 10 Duke will face Wake Forest for the second year in a row in the first round of the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament.
Like last year, the winner of the Duke-Wake Forest game will play against North Carolina on Saturday. The winner of that game will play against Virginia or Maryland in the championship game on Sunday.
The Blue Devils (11-8 overall, 3-5 in the ACC) pulled out a 2-1 overtime win over the Demon Deacons in the tournament last year, and are feeling more optimistic about their chances this time around.
"We're more of a threat this year than we were last year," junior Cyndi Breyer said. "This year we've beaten every team in the ACC except for UNC."
Duke also has the distinction of hosting this year's tournament. All games will be played on East Campus.
The ACC Tournament will be home to some of the best field hockey teams in the nation this year. Of the five teams playing in the tournament, four are ranked in the top ten nationally.
No. 1 North Carolina, No. 4 Virginia and No. 6 Maryland will all be battling to achieve a ranking in the top four nationally before the NCAA tournament-the top four teams get to host the tournament.
"[The ACC Tournament] is really important for all of the teams," Duke head coach Liz Tchou said.
Duke and Wake Forest will also be hoping for high national rankings, since only twelve teams compete in the NCAA Tournament.
"We're determined," Breyer said. "We're dying to go to NCAA's."
Good news came to the Blue Devils in advance of this weekend's tournament. Breyer and senior tri-captain Jodie Taylor were named to the All-ACC team on Wednesday while Tchou was chosen as the ACC Coach of the Year.
Duke also comes into the tournament riding the tails of its upset 3-2 double-overtime victory last weekend over Virginia.
"We're still pretty excited about that win," Tchou said. "The players are going to carry some confidence into our next game."
The Blue Devils played Wake Forest twice during the season, splitting the series with them. Duke won 1-0 in Winston-Salem on Oct. 7 and lost at home 2-0 later in the week on Oct. 11.
"We're going to do what worked when we beat them," Tchou said. "We're going to try to keep the ball outside. Defensively we're going to try to keep the ball on our right side."
Duke is also working on drawing penalty corners and keeping up momentum in the second half.
The Blue Devils are also looking inward in order to advance in the tournament, drawing on their companionship and unity.
"I've never been on such a close team before," Breyer said. "Our personalities just go together so well."
For Duke, this chemistry could narrow the difference in skill level between Duke and other teams, such as a Tar Heel squad that they haven't fared well against in the past.
"We may not be the most skilled players, but as a group we can play against any team in the country," Tchou said.
And this weekend, that means having to play against the best.
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