"Senior leadership" is one of the great cliches in the world of sports. In coach speak, seniors are the "generals," the "coaches on the field" and the "go-to guys." And, "when the chips are on the table," every coach swears his seniors are the kids he'd "want to go to war with."
Cliches are trite and annoying. But there's a reason a cliche becomes a cliche-it has a firm basis in fact.
And the simple fact about the women's soccer team is this: without the play of four seniors, Duke wouldn't be gearing up for a first-round NCAA tournament game Sunday against UNC-Greensboro. Instead, the Blue Devils would be settling in for a nice long winter.
You can't blame Atlantic Coast Conference Coach of the Year Bill Hempen for showering the cliches on his seniors. In a season of wild surprises, the only thing the No. 14 Blue Devils could count on has been the consistency of the Class of '98.
Forget about death and taxes; the two most predictable things in life these days are seniors Andi Melde and Samantha Baggett.
A career defender who had scored just three goals in her first three seasons, Baggett moved to forward midway through the year to fill in for injured Duke attackers Emily Feeney and Sherrill Kester. The results of that abrupt shift speak for themselves: the Daytona Beach native has scored an amazing 12 goals in Duke's last 11 games.
"My role for the first three and a half years here was to keep the other teams best players from scoring, keep them from attacking and from going forward," Baggett said. "Now my role is to score some goals. I don't think that I've suddenly dramatically improved. I've just been asked to play a different role."
Baggett suddenly finds herself as the number one scoring threat for the 15-5 Blue Devils. But she wouldn't be scoring at such a rapid pace without the help of her roommate and fellow forward Melde.
Melde has assisted on 10 of Baggett's 12 goals this year, and she became the Blue Devils' all-time assist leader in the season's fourth game, a 3-0 win over UNC-Charlotte. The scrappy, hard-nosed Colorado Springs native is currently ranked second in the nation with 20 total assists.
Want another cliche? As Andi Melde goes, so goes the Duke offense. This one's true, too: Melde's collected a goal or an assist in 11 of Duke's last 13 games, and she has scored a point in all but two of Duke's wins this year.
After a disappointing junior campaign in which she posted career lows in goals, assists and points, Melde has suddenly erupted into a front-line force. Her reward for a stunning senior year? Last week Melde became Duke's second ACC Player of the Year in the program's 10-year history.
"For me, it's not been surprising," Baggett said of Melde's explosion. "Maybe that's because I'm one of her biggest fans. She works so hard in practice. I knew she was a great player. I think she's just finally getting her breaks."
Hempen probably didn't expect to have to lean on Melde and Baggett so heavily for goals this year. But then, he probably didn't expect to lose six starters to major injuries.
Kester (stress fracture in foot) and Feeney (strained MCL) have both missed most of the year. Meanwhile, the season ended before it started for Liz Speights, Kari Juncker and Kim Daws, all lost to ACL tears. Freshman Stefanie Kraay (severe ankle sprain) is only the latest victim of the Blue Devils' injury bug.
Despite all that, Duke is just two wins away from tying the best record in school history.
"We have some great stories on this team," Hempen said. "Amanda Remy-she played one game in her previous three years. Now she's a starter, and she won't come off the field.... There's a lot of inner strength on this team that we hope can carry us through the weekend."
Remy, a starter by default in Speights' absence, has blossomed into a solid marking back. Fellow senior and second team All-ACC honoree Lauren Cyran is the other force on Duke's back line.
The fifth-seeded Blue Devils host the Spartans at 1 p.m. at Duke Soccer Stadium. The winner plays the winner of Georgia vs. Clemson.
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