In a season where a national championship is within your grasp, you have to make a statement every time you take the field.
Although the men's lacrosse team has already handled several difficult opponents this season, second-ranked Duke will be looking to make another statement when it travels to sixth-ranked Georgetown tomorrow at 1 p.m.
Duke (6-0) has made its presence felt as it is enjoying its best start in school history. After notching victories over seventh-ranked Maryland and No. 9 UMBC, the Blue Devils were able to stage a comeback in the second half of their 9-4 win over No. 11 Navy.
As a result of their impressive play, Duke has moved up the polls to No. 2, the highest-ever ranking in program history, in the most recent STX/United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association poll.
The Blue Devils, however, will not have any time to celebrate as they prepare for a motivated Hoyas team that will be looking for revenge after losing a tight 8-7 game against Duke last year.
"We've beaten Georgetown seven times in a row, but every game we've played has been close," coach Mike Pressler said. "They are a very good squad and we really need to be prepared to face this squad."
The Hoyas come into the weekend with an impressive 4-0 record. Although two of their victories came against lowly Butler and Army, Georgetown has also played well against ranked opponents. The Hoyas opened the season with a 12-4 victory over then-No. 15 Brown and are coming off an 11-6 win against UMBC.
The key will be Duke's defense and Georgetown's offense in a matchup of strength versus strength. Georgetown has been nothing short of explosive in its four games, scoring 22 total goals against Butler and Army. Leading the offense for the Hoyas is All-American Greg McCavera. The senior attackman gave Duke's defense fits last year by scoring four goals in the first half of the Blue Devils' win.
"[McCavera] is a fine player who we have a lot of respect for," said Pressler. "He burned us last year, and this time we're going to have to keep a closer eye on him and cover him by a committee of defensemen."
Along with McCavera, senior attackman Scott Urick and junior attackman Andy Flick have provided the bulk of the Georgetown offense, supplying 37 goals and 18 assists. In order to be successful tomorrow, the Duke defense, led by seniors Dan Umbel, Palin Archer and Marc Amen, will need to stop the Hoyas attack.
"Georgetown has a potent offense that can score often, while we're built around our defense," said Pressler. "To win Saturday, we're going to have to control the tempo of the game with our close defense and score anytime we get out in transition."
Although this will be a big early season matchup for Duke, the Blue Devils have kept perspective on the importance of this game.
"We aren't surprised by our success because we expected to be competitive this season," said Pressler. "One team is going to lose this game, and if that happens to us, we're going to have to just regroup. Our goal every year is to win the ACC and to compete for the national title, and I think we're putting ourselves in that position this year."
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