The women’s soccer team has been unstoppable recently.
Since a difficult 5-1 loss to Florida in the Nike Carolina Classic three weeks ago, the No. 14 Blue Devils (8-2, 1-0 in the ACC) have been on a tear, netting 25 goals while yielding none. The Blue Devils face one of their biggest challenges of the season when they put their six-game winning streak on the line against No. 9 Florida State (7-2, 1-1) this Friday at 7 p.m. in Koskinen Stadium.
“This is a really big game,” Duke co-captain Casey McCluskey said. “I guess we’re just trying to focus really hard on some of the stuff FSU does, and they’re obviously a top team coming to our field, so it’s a great opportunity for us to upset them.”
Florida State has one of the top programs in the ACC and last year made a deep charge into postseason play. Duke head coach Robbie Church is familiar with the strong and balanced play of his team’s opponents.
“FSU returns almost all of their players from their Final Four team,” Church said. “[The Seminoles’] front runners are very good; they have got a great combination. Their midfielders, their backs, and their goalkeeper [are also] very good.”
A big reason for Duke’s recent spurt has been its ability to finish scoring opportunities, Church said. The Blue Devils will have to continue this trend Friday against tough competition. The Seminoles boast the third-best defense in the ACC and have given up up two goals in their last five games.
But regardless of what defense FSU throws at the Blue Devils, Duke is a different squad than the one that lost to Florida.
“I think we were an embarrassed team and I think we knew we were better than that,” Church said. “We refocused and went out and we started winning, and I think we have really enjoyed winning. Winning has led to that we have played harder in each game, and I think the girls enjoy their winning streak, and they don’t want it to come to an end.”
In order to beat FSU, the Blue Devils not only have to keep putting the ball in the net, but the defense and midfield need to continue giving the attackers quality chances. Even though players like McCluskey, who was named to the Soccer America National Team of the Week Wednesday, have had phenomenal individual seasons thus far, Duke’s success can be attributed to team play.
“A lot of our players have worked really hard to get [McCluskey] the ball in the right situations, and she has done a phenomenal job of being able to finish,” Church said. “Our defenders have worked hard to keep the ball out of the back of the net so she can score some game-winning goals. I think it’s a team award, but Casey has led it individually, and were very proud of her for what she has done.”
Friday’s game is only the second ACC contest for the Blue Devils, who have eight straight conference matches to close out their regular season. Currently Duke sits in third place, and each remaining ACC game has a large impact on postseason tournament seedings. The Blue Devils will play their third conference match Sunday at Miami. The Hurricanes lost 4-2 to No. 15 Clemson on the road Wednesday after falling in a 3-0 goal deficit early.
Even though Duke has had a stellar start to the season, the biggest games have yet to be played. Church has the bar set high.
“Our goal for the weekend is to win two games,” Church said. “That’s what were setting out to do, and hopefully we’ll accomplish that.”
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