In a game it had to win, North Carolina delivered.
No. 15 North Carolina (6-5, 1-2 in the ACC) pulled off an upset over second-ranked Duke (9-1, 1-1) last night at Duke Lacrosse Stadium.
The Tar Heels got their first conference win in 11 tries and stopped Duke's school-record winning streak at nine games. The win should also go a long way in cementing their NCAA tournament hopes.
North Carolina jumped out to a 5-0 halftime lead, marking the first time this season that Duke has been held scoreless for the first half. The Blue Devils came back, however, and were down just 10-9 with a chance to tie the game in its waning seconds.
With seven ticks left on the clock, Nick Hartofilis had the ball at midfield due to offsetting penalties. He streaked down the field looking to pull off a miraculous goal but was chased down and hit by a North Carolina defender.
Hartofilis lost the ball but seemed to regain possession when he was hit again. He desperately took a shot, but the ball was not in the pocket, and Duke lost for the first time this season.
"He's fast; I didn't realize the guy was so fast," Hartofilis said of the final play. "He just got me with a good check."
Following a first half that Hartofilis described as "awful," the Blue Devils finally began clicking on offense in the second half, outscoring the Tar Heels 9-5. With 7:47 left in the game, Jared Frood shot the ball from a sharp, left angle, but somehow found the back of the cage. The goal cut Carolina's lead to 8-7 and the Blue Devils gained momentum.
Duke won the ensuing faceoff, but a penalty gave the ball to the Tar Heels. Duke keeper Matt Breslin saved a shot and attempted to pass the ball up the field. As he did, Jeff Sonke leapt into the air and knocked down the pass. He scooped it up and scored, giving the Tar Heels a 9-7 advantage.
"He threw the ball up to a defenseman who looked open," Carolina coach Dave Klarmann said of Breslin. "But Sonke's 6-2 and very athletic and he jumped up and made a great play."
On the very next possession, Sonke scored once again with just five minutes remaining, seemingly putting the game out of Duke's reach. But the Blue Devils answered with two goals in a row and a few nice defensive steals gave Duke a few opportunities before Hartofilis' final drive.
Still, the Blue Devils could not muster enough to complete the comeback. A strong performance from the Tar Heel defense combined with Duke's ball-handling woes buried the Blue Devils in a hole too deep.
"We made some mistakes and they capitalized on them," Duke coach Mike Pressler said. "We made some defensive mistakes that really came back to haunt us. And we can play better on offense. We should have had 14,15,16 goals, and that's the bottom line."
In the first half especially, Duke threw away possessions with many careless turnovers. And when the Blue Devils had open looks, their shots were just off line.
"We hit six pipes in the first quarter," Pressler said. "It was as if someone put a lid on the goal."
And while Duke's goal was a closed lid, Chase Martin had a field day with his cage. The junior attackman scored twice to open the game and his pass to Matt Crofton gave his Tar Heels a 3-0 lead. UNC added two more and kept Duke scoreless.
"I thought we played pretty well, but they played exceptionally," Pressler said. "They deserved to win. We didn't lose today, Carolina beat us. I give them all the credit in the world. They had to win this game."
Despite the slow start, Duke surged in the third quarter, opening with a 4-0 run. With 2:10 left in the quarter, Jared Frood scored the first of his three goals to tie the game at six.
But once again Martin struck, scoring with just 37 seconds left in the third quarter. Jeremy Carey scored his second goal and the lead was back up to two at 8-6. And although Frood's goal from the left cut the lead and seemed to spark the Blue Devils emotionally, the damage had been done.
Notes: The loss was Duke's first to North Carolina since an 18-8 defeat in the 1996 ACC tournament.... Despite the loss, Duke can still win the ACC regular season with a win Sunday against Virginia. That game is scheduled for 2 p.m. at Duke Lacrosse Stadium.... Should the Blue Devils beat the No. 4 Cavaliers Sunday, it will play UNC in the first round of the ACC tournament held in Chapel Hill.
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