For the last 15 minutes of Friday’s 2-1 loss to North Carolina, No. 11 Duke (4-1, 1-1 in the ACC) showed how dangerous it can be—stringing passes together, scoring a late goal and nearly sending the match into overtime.
The No. 3 Tar Heels, however, spent the first 75 minutes of the match in complete control. They outshot the Blue Devils 17-5, dominated possession and showed the crowd of over 4,000 fans at Fetzer Field why they are one of the premier programs in the nation.
“I have to congratulate North Carolina,” head coach John Kerr said. “They played a great game and they deserved to win. They taught us a lot about where we are at the moment and where we need to go.”
Coming into this game, the Blue Devils were certainly in a good place—nationally ranked, undefeated following a dramatic 1-0 victory over Virginia in their last match and full of confidence.
But then Duke ran into North Carolina (5-0-1, 2-0), a team that was bigger, faster and stronger than anyone it had encountered all season.
“The biggest difference with [the Tar Heels] is that all over the field, they’re very athletic, they’re very quick, and you can tell,” senior Ryan McDaniel said.
Nowhere was North Carolina’s athletic advantage more evident than in Duke’s attacking third. The speed and size of the Tar Heels’ defenders rendered any long balls over the top or down the line completely ineffective.
Also, the North Carolina back line was quick enough to pressure every short pass and snuff out any attempts to slowly build an attack.
“Whenever they lost the ball they put pressure on us right away and made life very difficult for us,” Kerr said. “We didn’t take advantage when we had possession.”
The Blue Devils seemed helpless against the Tar Heel defense for the first hour of the game and didn’t register a shot on goal until the 61st minute.
North Carolina, on the other hand, encountered no such hardships. The Tar Heels generated chances early and often, sending two shots just over the top of the goal in the first 18 minutes. Twenty-two minutes in, forward Billy Schuler gained possession a few yards outside of the Blue Devil box, created a tiny window of space and carved a left-footed shot off the right post and into the Duke goal.
The Tar Heels kept the pressure on all game, and Duke finally broke again midway into the second half. North Carolina’s Cameron Brown received a pass on the left side and slid the ball past Duke goalkeeper James Belshaw just inside the far post.
Despite the constant pressure, Belshaw performed admirably, making several diving stops and not giving up any rebounds.
“He was fantastic tonight,” Kerr said. “He kept us in the game and gave us a chance to get back into it. He made some spectacular saves.”
In the 78th minute, Duke finally managed to wear down the North Carolina defense and get on the scoreboard. Senior Josh Bienenfeld ripped a shot from 30 yards out that knuckled downward, creating an awkward short hop that the Tar Heel goalie could not handle. Freshman Ryan Finley was right there and fired it home to bring the Blue Devils back within one goal and give the team renewed confidence.
“We got a good shot and a good goal,” McDaniel said. “That’s all it takes, getting the other team on its heels…. It’s a shame we have to wait for a goal and can’t play like that the whole game.”
A 12-minute scramble ensued after the goal, during which Duke moved the ball, created opportunities and nearly took advantage—but the Blue Devils couldn’t break through again to knock the Tar Heels from their perch atop the ACC.
“We have to bring our ‘A’ game if we’re going to win games,” Kerr said. “But some players brought their ‘A’ game tonight and some players didn’t. We have to be on as a group in order to win.”
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