When the Division I top-20 field hockey rankings came out this past Tuesday, Duke's two weekend opponents, Temple and Old Dominion, were ranked 16th and first, respectively. Wake Forest, whom the Blue Devils defeated 2-1 on Wednesday, was 11th.
Duke was unranked.
But after beating Temple 2-1 on Saturday and staying close to No. 1 Old Dominion Sunday, the Blue Devils served notice that they are easily among the top 20 teams in the nation.
"We were underdogs against Wake and against Temple," Duke coach Liz Tchou. "I don't think we're really concerned with what other people think. In our hearts and in our minds, we're a top-20 team."
A pair of goals from senior Melissa Panasci propelled Duke (4-3) over the Owls (3-3) on Saturday. Panasci scored the Blue Devils' only goal against Old Dominion Sunday, but the Monarchs (8-0) took advantage of 21 penalty corners, converting on four of them in a 4-1 win.
Despite the three-goal loss to the top team in the country, what stood out for Duke was its performance in the second half. The Blue Devils held the Monarchs scoreless in the second stanza, though they too were unable to find the cage. After allowing four first-half goals, Duke's defense tightened and kept Old Dominion away from the Blue Devil cage.
"To hold them to 0-0 in the second half is great, but we really need to have that in the first half as well," Panasci said. "Our defense picked it up in the second half as far as not letting them have that many corners. Overall, I'm impressed with us today."
In the first half, Duke's primary breakdown came inside its circle. The Blue Devils gave the Monarchs numerous opportunities by committing fouls that led to penalty corners. The corners led to goals.
Joey Evans began the scoring just over 12 minutes into the game after a penalty corner resulted in a scramble just to the left of Duke's cage. Evans tipped a shot by Blue Devil goalie Sarah Doherty to put the Monarchs on top. Six minutes later, Kelly Driscoll took a pass from Heather Simon and blasted home a shot from 15 feet out, giving Old Dominion a seemingly commanding 2-0 lead.
But Duke did not back down. The Blue Devils took advantage of their only penalty corner of the first half when Panasci rang home a bullet from the point at 15:11, cutting the Monarchs' lead in half. Emily Ford and Cyndi Breyer set up the lone Duke goal on the afternoon.
Before the first half was over, though, penalty corners killed the Blue Devils again. Mimi Smith connected on two, at 9:23 and 8:37, to effectively seal Duke's fate and give the top-ranked Monarchs their eighth straight win.
Despite the loss, the Blue Devils overall play, particularly in the second half, left them upbeat about their progression.
"I think we realize that we really can play with [Old Dominion]," Panasci said. "They were good, but we're just as good. We can play with any team in the nation right now."
Panasci and Duke showed on Saturday that they can definitely play with Temple. The senior scored just three minutes into the game, off an assist from freshman Mo Denney, to give the Blue Devils a quick lead.
The Owls' Gina DeFazio tied the contest eight minutes later on a penalty corner, and the score held throughout the rest of the first half. But Duke didn't let the game slip away. Panasci put in her second goal of the game unassisted with 19:14 left and the Blue Devils held on the rest of the way for a 2-1 win.
"Temple's a really tough team, and we were sort of surprised at that," Panasci said. "We weren't sure that they were going to be as strong as we were. I think our defense really did click. We played well together and passed well."
The Temple win looms particularly important as the season progresses. Though it's early, beating a top-20 non-conference opponent will help the Blue Devils when the field is set for the NCAAs.
Duke's performance in the second half against Old Dominion could pay quicker dividends. The Monarchs topped UNC 5-4 on Saturday, and now the Blue Devils feel that they can play with both teams. Duke hosts second-ranked North Carolina on Friday at 7 p.m.
"I think we're really progressing," Tchou said. "The more rest we can get this week, I think we'll come out strong this weekend against UNC."
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