CHAPEL HILL - Just playing in itself tonight was a victory.
The Blue Devils came out and poured forth as much energy as they could muster in memory of assistant coach Maria Whitehead, who passed away at the age of 25 from cancer Wednesday.
In the end, though, No. 4 Duke (14-5) could not overcome bad luck, as it fell to No. 8 North Carolina (13-7) 2-0 Thursday in the first round of the ACC Championships at Francis E. Henry Stadium.
Whitehead, who joined Duke's program in February and starred at Wake Forest before graduating in 2003, had an impact on more than just the Blue Devils.
"The entire field hockey community across the country feels this loss," North Carolina head coach Karen Shelton said. "We're feeling for both teams-Wake Forest and their families and Duke and their families."
Despite Whitehead's death, which the team was informed of early Wednesday evening, Duke chose to go on with the game. Blue Devil head coach Beth Bozman said if Whitehead were still around, she would have wanted her team to play.
"She would've wanted us to be here today," said Bozman, teary-eyed during the post-game press conference. "As hard as it was, it was never about us. It was always about her."
To remember Whitehead and all she had contributed to Duke, the team came out displaying wristbands honoring her, a decision Bozman said the team made Tuesday, before Whitehead's death.
The team had hoped to bring news of victory back to Whitehead. Unfortunately, the Blue Devils lost both the game and a good coach, Bozman said.
With Whitehead's father watching from the sidelines, the game went on.
"I just wanted to go out and play," senior captain Hilary Linton said. "You never know when we're not going to be able to play."
Whitehead's death, announced early Thursday, left Duke's emotional state up in the air.
"The Duke team could either rally with this or it would just be very difficult for them to focus," Shelton said.
For nearly all the first half, the Blue Devils could not break through North Carolina's defense. The Tar Heels pressed Duke as soon as the Blue Devils touched the ball, consistently forcing them to the sideline with two and sometimes three defenders.
The Blue Devils came out much more aggressive and cohesive in the second half, as they made crisper passes and poked away Tar Heel possessions.
"We just corrected some things we had hoped to do in the first half but didn't [do]," Bozman said.
It all unraveled, however, around the 64th minute. The Tar Heels converted a penalty corner into what appeared to be the go-ahead goal, but the officials declared it null. Moments later, however, UNC's Alli Tanner deflected Brooke Miller's shot off another penalty corner into the net for the game-winning goal.
Miller would add another goal on a penalty stroke three minutes later to set the final score.
Still, Duke's biggest loss this week was not the one Thursday to its rival.
"It's not been a great week," Bozman said. "We went into this game not to play for [Whitehead] but to play for everything she's meant for us."
While Duke will likely play again this season in the NCAA tournament, games do not hold much significance right now for anyone on the team.
"I don't think anyone walked off that field saying they had left anything there today," Bozman said. "It's a game-only a game."
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