One year ago, Duke was tied in a scoreless game in the final minutes against unranked N.C. State with the match seemingly headed for overtime.
The Blue Devils-ranked No. 16 at the time-threatened several times during the contest, but with time running out in regulation, Wolfpack forward Aaron King fired off an 89th-minute shot that found the back of the net and won the game for N.C. State, 1-0.
"We weren't happy with our loss to them last year," said junior midfielder Chris Loftus. "No loss is a good loss."
Duke went on to lose three of its next five games, including the ACC Championship final against Virginia.
This season, the Blue Devils (8-3-1, 2-2-1 in the ACC) are No. 16 again and find themselves in a very familiar position. In another late-season matchup, Duke will play No. 14 N.C. State (9-4-1, 3-2-1) at 7 p.m. in Koskinen Stadium after losing 1-0 to No. 4 Virginia Sunday in the game's final minutes.
"It's only one game," head coach John Rennie said. "You just have to get it behind you whether or not you're coming off a win or a loss."
Sunday's game was the first time Duke's potent offense had been shut out since last year's 5-0 loss to the University of California at Santa Barbara in the College Cup.
Loftus, who leads the Blue Devils with eight goals this season, said his team does not feel any extra pressure to perform offensively.
After allowing King's game-winning goal in 2004, the defense will again be challenged by the senior's offensive abilities.
"He's a good player," sophomore goalkeeper Justin Papadakis said. "He's very quick, very talented. He's one of the best finishers in the country"
King's 13 goals this season have accounted for over 50 percent of N.C. State's offense. In his junior campaign he scored 11 goals, including the game-winner against Duke.
Rennie hopes that the memory of last year's game will make the Blue Devils unforgiving in tonight's match.
"Any time you lose to a team, the next time you play them you want to win," Rennie said.
Duke is currently fifth in the ACC, but with a victory over the Wolfpack and a Virginia Tech loss at Clemson, would move into third.
"The guys know what's at stake," senior co-captain Danny Kramer said. "Every ACC game is a big game. But this one, in particular, is very big. It's the end of the season, we're in the middle of the conference now.... It not's too hard to get the guys to be motivated for a game like this."
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