For the second time in under two weeks, the men's soccer team (8-10, 2-4 in the ACC) is set to face off against the No. 9 Wake Forest Demon Deacons (13-4-1, 3-2-1) Thursday at 3 p.m. This opening-round match of the ACC Tournament at Historic Riggs Field in Clemson, S.C., however, will have even higher stakes: another Blue Devil loss to Wake could very well end Duke's season, as well as the team's string of 23 consecutive seasons with a winning record.
Although the Blue Devils dropped a match to the Demon Deacons 2-0 on Nov. 3 in Winston-Salem, the upcoming game looks to be an even affair. While Wake Forest is the fourth-seeded team, and is a sizzling 9-1-1 over its last 11 matches, in the single-elimination tournament, the Blue Devils are just below them as the fifth seed.
"The [first game] was a very close match," Duke coach John Rennie said. "We outshot Wake Forest, beat them statistically and played well, but we gave up two early goals in the first half. We just have to find a way to stop giving up the goals, and we need to find a way to score ourselves. [The game will be played at a neutral site], so it should be a very even contest."
The key to the game will be Duke's ability to contain the ACC's leading scorer, Wake Forest's sophomore forward sensation Jeremiah White. White, who finished the regular season with 37 points, is one of the top strikers in the nation and an incredibly quick player.
"You just have to try and double team him whenever you can," Rennie said. "You concentrate as a team on making sure that you get pressure on the ball. When it's one-against-one, he can beat anybody."
While Duke's defense has been very solid throughout the year, the offense has struggled at times-particularly in the latter stages of the season. Overall, the Blue Devils are averaging 1.22 goals per game, and have been shutout six times thus far, including their last two games. To make matters worse, Duke's leading scorer, sophomore forward Jordan Cila, will not be playing due to illness.
Cila's illness is just another example of the hard luck that has confounded the Blue Devils throughout the season. In addition to Cila, five Blue Devil starters, including the heart of the defense, sophomore defender Matt Ahumada, will be unable to play due to a combination of injury, illness and suspension.
All of the injuries have taken their toll on the consistency of the team, as Rennie has been hard-pressed to keep a single lineup together throughout the season. The results have been the poor offensive performance, as well as a 2-8 record in games decided by one goal-including two overtime and three double OT matches.
Despite the hardships, the Blue Devils, as evidenced by the words of their coach, will not be quitting anytime soon.
"We want to compete and play hard," Rennie said. "And I think we have been. We are going to work as hard as we can, do the best that we can and hope that things start to go our way."
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