Tuesday afternoon was a disappointing one for the women's lacrosse team as it dropped a heartbreaker to Towson State 14-13 at the Duke Lacrosse Stadium. The loss left the Blue Devils (3-4) below .500 for the first time this season and marked the third straight loss after Duke started out the year an impressive 3-1.
The Tigers (4-1) took the lead for good in the second three-minute half of overtime when Amy Buck found the back of the net with 2:15 remaining. The Blue Devils mustered several late charges, but were thwarted by the Towson State defense and could only futilely pursue the stalling Tiger attack as time expired.
The loss marked the first time in the two-year history of the program that Duke has participated in an overtime contest.
"I don't think we handled the overtime period any differently than we handled the whole game," coach Kerstin Kimel said. "I don't think we played a good game at all. We didn't do the little things, and for a team like ours, being as young as we are, we have to do the little things in order win."
The loss was particularly frustrating for the young Blue Devil squad because the match against the Tigers presented Duke with an opportunity to get back on track after suffering back-to-back losses to top-10 teams Georgetown and Dartmouth.
"This was a pivotal game for us because it would have put us at 4-3-not that I am necessarily so concerned about the record, its just the winning," Kimel said. "Its always to our advantage as young team to head into our next game coming off a win."
The momentum in the game certainly belonged to Duke as the two teams headed into the half with the Blue Devils up 6-4. Freshman Tricia Martin netted two of her game-high four goals in the first frame while the defense, led by junior Heather Keeney and sophomore Sandy Johnston, applied constant pressure to the Tiger attack.
Towson State came out of the intermission roaring, however, reeling off four straight goals in under five minutes to start the second half, securing an 8-6 lead. Most of the goals in the streak resulted from defensive breakdowns on the part of the Blue Devils paired with increased intensity from the Tigers.
"I think this was really a tough game for us defensively; I think that's been our stronghold all season," Kimel said. "Today, little goals were scored because we didn't make good decisions and we didn't communicate well. We weren't playing with confidence and we weren't really in control at that point."
Duke put a stop to the Towson State onslaught with a run of its own as Martin and juniors Karen Sutton and Amy Murnick notched consecutive unassisted goals in a 3:28 span to recapture the lead, 9-8. The turnaround coincided with a substitution by Kimel that brought emotional catalyst Murnick into the game.
"Amy gives us a little spark off the bench and that was the purpose of putting her in the game," Kimel said. "We knew that if we were going to win this game, it was going to be from a couple individual efforts and Amy always gives us 100 percent. She is kind of unorthodox, and I think that usually catches some defenders off guard as well."
From that point on, it was a see-saw affair that saw the lead change three times before regulation ended with the score knotted at 12.
Towson State fired home two goals within 22 seconds of each other to grab the 10-9 lead, only to have Duke take it right back with goals from Martin and freshman Keri Dunn. Martin's goal was particularly well-executed as she back-handed a shot past Tiger goalie Jacquie Sica off a precision pass from Johnston.
After two more Towson State goals made it 12-11, the Blue Devils' Emily Hickman netted the equalizer with 5:09 remaining. The freshman defender weaved her way through the Tiger defense and forced a shot that was initially blocked by Sica before it dribbled in.
Duke had a chance to win in regulation when freshman defender Katie Regan was fouled in front of the net with six seconds remaining, but Sica came up with the big save on the ensuing shot, sending the game into extra time.
In the first overtime half, Towson State's Megan Drake slammed home a pass from Robyn Harry 41 seconds in, giving the Tigers the quick 13-12 lead. The Blue Devils answered at the 1:25 mark with a one-timer of their own as sophomore Megan McLaughlin scored her second goal of the game off a pass from sophomore Kendra Basner. Duke actually put the ball into the net two other times in the overtime session-once by Murnick, the other by Martin-but both goals were waived off because of crease violations.
Although a detrimental shot to both Duke's record and its confidence, the loss also served to point out the Blue Devils' largest weaknesses.
"We can always learn from something like this," McLaughlin said. "It was our inexperience that lost it in the end. We are a young team, mostly freshmen and sophomores-especially on attack. It hurts the morale, but there is a lot to be learned."
Duke will have plenty of time to incorporate Tuesday's lessons-its next match is not until next Tuesday, against arch-rival North Carolina.
"We have a week off, but we have a lot of work to do," Kimel said.
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