It was the kind of loss you don't forget.
The Blue Devils were cruising in last year's NCAA quarterfinals against UCLA, holding a 2-0 lead at home with a defense that had not given up a goal in four games. But in just under an hour, the lead and four months' worth of aspirations vanished.
Sal Zizzo's overtime goal, just 30 seconds into the extra session, capped a late Bruin comeback and abruptly halted then-No. 1 Duke's quest for a national championship.
"From a competitor's standpoint, that was one of those losses that sticks with you," senior captain Tim Jepson said. "When the NCAAs come around again this year, it's going to be the first thing on our minds. We were here in this position last year, and now we know what it's going to take to get back to that spot and hopefully further."
After last season's ending, the senior-laden Blue Devils did not need extra motivation heading into 2007. But Duke got just that when long-time head coach John Rennie announced that his 29th season at the helm would be his last.
Rennie's resume includes five ACC championships, five College Cup appearances and the University's first national championship in any sport in 1986. He hopes, however, to add a little more to it by the end of 2007.
"I told the guys the other day we have 13 seniors on this team, and now we have 14," Rennie said. "I'm a senior as well, and all the seniors always want to go out on top."
Rennie looks to have picked the right year to do just that. Duke adds the nation's top recruiting class to a corps that won the last two ACC championships.
That combination of talent and experience has the Blue Devils ranked fourth in the country and confident they can overcome the heartbreak of postseasons past.
"I don't want to set any marks," junior forward Mike Grella said. "But we can win the whole thing without a lot of problems. If we just stay compact and organized and work hard, I don't see us losing."
Duke's upperclassmen see the incoming freshmen as the final piece of the championship puzzle.
The rookies have adjusted almost immediately to the team's style, meshing with the team dynamic and especially interacting with the veterans.
"That's one of the biggest things about our team is that we're very welcoming," said Jepson, the anchor of the defense. "We don't have cliques, we don't shut people out. That's what makes us unique from every other team-we are just a band of brothers and there for each other."
The Blue Devils, however, insist they are not looking too far down the line-at least not yet. Duke has to navigate the always-treacherous conference schedule.
With Virginia and Wake Forest reaching last season's final four, the ACC has now sent five different teams to the College Cup in the last three years. The Demon Deacons, who shared the regular season conference crown with the Blue Devils a season ago, open the season third in the country.
"This team is as good as any I've had from an overall standpoint," Rennie said. "I always tell the team you cannot win a national championship until you earn the right to play for it. So this team is like 200 others right now-they think they can win every game they play. They've got a better chance than most, but that's in the future."
A future that, for at least one more year, includes Rennie on the sidelines and a group of seniors poised to usher him into retirement with a title.
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