Miller pushes Duke to pair of wins

Early in the first overtime period of Sunday’s final of the Champions Challenge, senior defenseman Lauren Miller was one-on-one in a penalty stroke situation with Michigan State goalie Elissa Unger. Knowing what an important spot she was in, the senior responded by beating Unger and lifting the No. 10 Blue Devils (2-0) to a 3-2 win over the eighth-ranked Spartans. “This was a really big game for us. It was personal for us to show that we have worked so hard,” Miller said. “To have the game riding on that stroke, it’s an honor to be a captain and step up there. I had all that on my mind and just wanted to do it for the girls.” The game-winning penalty stroke was set up when sophomore midfielder Tara Jennings burst through Michigan State’s back line only to be denied near the top of the scoring area by a sliding Unger. A fight for the loose ball ensued, and Rhian Jones was able to get a shot off that was blocked by a Michigan State violation  in the circle that set up the penalty stroke. The overtime goal was Miller’s third in two games--she scored two of Duke’s goals in Saturday’s 3-0 win over No. 13 Louisville (1-2). Starting off the season with consecutive wins and a tournament victory is a terrific start for a young Blue Devil team that hadn’t won their opener since Miller’s freshman year. “I know we were ranked sixth in the ACC preseason, but if you look at our youth, that’s where I’d expect to be ranked,” head coach Beth Bozman. “I expect this team to do something this year.” Although Bozman picked up her 100th win as head coach at Duke with the victory, that accomplishment looked anything but certain in the first half. The period was marred by sloppy passing and several turnovers in Duke’s own zone that gave the Spartans easy scoring opportunities. In the game’s third minute, Michigan State (1-1) capitalized on one of those chances when Jantine Steinmetz flipped one into the top corner of the cage. The Blue Devil offense started out sluggishly and was unable to get a shot on goal until 15 minutes into the action. While the play would pick up through the end of the half, the Blue Devils entered the locker room down a score, but the coaching staff was pleased with the way the team reverted back to the game plan in overcoming the slow start. “The second half of the first half we really played our game but just couldn’t get the ball in,” Bozman said. “We penetrated the circle and knew that if we stuck to the game plan we would be able to pull this game off.” Yet things got worse before they got better when Steinmetz opened the second half by slipping a shot into the bottom left corner of the goal, putting the Spartans up, 2-0. From that point on, however, the scoring would be all Duke. Just six minutes later, junior tri-captain Sarah Schoffstall took a pass from Miller and converted it into the first Blue Devil score. The team would build on this momentum and knot the game at 2-2 just minutes later when forward Susan Ferger turned a Jennings pass into the game-tying goal that would force overtime, in large part due to the stellar play of netminder Samantha Nelson. Nelson recorded four saves on the day, several of which occurred in tough one-on-one situations with a Spartan on a breakaway. In front of Nelson, the rest of the defense came up big, even helping to hold Michigan State scoreless during overtime’s first 11 minutes with Jennings sidelined after receiving a yellow card.  “Samantha was excellent this weekend,” Bozman said. “I can’t tell you how hard she’s worked since last November for moments like these.” Still, without Miller’s game-deciding penalty stroke, the Blue Devils wouldn’t be heading to Philadelphia next weekend to take on Drexel with a 2-0 mark in the standings or tournament hardware back in their locker room.