It has been done.
Despite losing preseason All-American Tricia Martin to a red card with 18:45 remaining in the contest, No. 2 Duke (7-1, 1-1 in the ACC) defeated third-ranked North Carolina (4-3, 1-2) for the first time in four tries, 8-7, Wednesday night at Duke Lacrosse Stadium.
With Martin out of the game, Kate Soulier took control of the offense, scoring the Blue Devils' final two goals in a closely contested battle.
"What I am happiest about was that this was a tight, hard-nosed game, and we came out on top," coach Kerstin Kimel said. "Mentally, that was a big hump for us to get over, and we did it."
Tar Heel Meghann Molher found the back of the net with 5:05 left in the game to tie the score at 7-7. With just 2:47 to play, however, Soulier drove hard to the net, slipping a shot past goalie Debbie Castine for the 8-7 advantage.
Duke goalkeeper Shannon Chaney and the Blue Devils defense held off a furious rally from the Tar Heels in the final minute for the one goal victory.
"I think it's amazing that we have been able to use so many different players in different roles this year," midfielder Karen Sutton said. "Before we always relied on certain individuals to carry us through, but tonight everybody just stepped up to play."
While Martin tallied three assists, she did not record a goal. Instead, six other Blue Devils found the net, led by Soulier and Claire Sullivan with two apiece.
"We have a lot of depth," Sutton said. "Basically everybody on the field had a sub at some point in the game. As soon our legs got tired you could get a rest. Last year [against UNC], some of us just got physically exhausted."
UNC jumped on the board first with a goal from Gray McNair 2:39 into the contest. Duke answered just 52 seconds later when Kate Kaiser rippled the twine.
The Tar Heels opened up a 3-1 advantage with 17:43 remaining in the half, before Claire Finn pulled the Blue Devils back within one with 14:55 left in the opening stanza.
At this point, Martin did her best John Stockton impression, dishing out two perfect assists to Claire Sullivan and Amy Noble, which gave the home team a 4-3 lead at intermission.
UNC's Molher opened the second half with two goals of her own in a 4:45 span, putting the Tar Heels back in front. Duke once again responded with two goals of its own to take the lead back with 23:54.
The Blue Devils had two opportunities to stretch their lead, but missed their target by inches both times. Then, the roof appeared as if it might cave in for Duke.
Martin received her second yellow card of the game on a questionable slashing call with 18:45 to play. Both benches erupted as Martin was given the red card that comes with two yellows and exited the game.
Less than two minutes later, Soulier powered her way inside and found the back of the net giving Duke its largest lead of the night at 7-5. The Tar Heels fought back to tie the score, but Duke, winners of six consecutive games, would not be denied on this night.
"We did what we had to do to win tonight, and I'll take that," Kimel said. "We had some kids that were really prepared to step up to the challenge tonight and play. I can't ask for a whole lot more than that."
The Blue Devils' offense controlled the ball for most of the night, and the defense remained solid when UNC managed an offensive set. The majority of the Tar Heels' goals came in transition, as they were able to outrun many of the Duke players. But when the transition game failed, UNC was unable to execute.
Unlike last season when Duke fell to UNC, this Blue Devil team remained focused, even when the Tar Heels rallied to take a lead or tie the game. Duke answered every UNC run almost immediately to regain control of the contest.
"What is so exciting for us is that this year the kids really believed they could [beat UNC]," Kimel said. "In the past we were always excited about the game, but this year when it was close, we knew we could hang on."
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