After a devastating 4-0 loss against Maryland, Duke hopes to step up its game against No. 5 Florida State after a week of rest.
“Sunday was a big disappointment and we didn’t play like ourselves at all, but we had a week until this next game, so we’re refocused and excited to play against Florida State,” senior captain Jane Alukonis said. “We have a lot to prove, and this would be a great team to do that against.”
The Blue Devils (4-5-3, 0-2-1 in the ACC) take on Florida State Sunday at 1 p.m. in Koskinen Stadium. The Seminoles (10-2-0, 3-1-0) were national finalists in 2007.
“We’ll be playing a great team who, depending on the polls, is ranked third to fifth in the country,” head coach Robbie Church said. “This is a game we’re looking to win, and I think we can.”
Duke’s last top-10 win came against Florida State in 2006, and the Blue Devils earned a 1-1 tie versus the Seminoles in 2007. Church is confident the team will still perform well, primarily because the Blue Devils benefit from playing Florida State’s up-tempo style. An up-and-down game could suit Duke.
“We have a great mentality, and the seniors do great jobs of being leaders both on and off the field,” he said. “We expect to be ready to play with enthusiasm and intensity and to compete hard.”
Duke has had a difficult start to the ACC schedule, with a loss to No. 1 North Carolina, a tie with No. 9 Wake Forest and a loss to No. 22 Maryland in a span of 11 days, but hopes to regroup after having a break between back-to-back matches.
One thing the players felt they needed to work on was increasing their stamina to last longer in the game, especially with fewer players on the bench because of injuries.
“We want to be able to play with a higher intensity for a longer time. Sometimes we have great soccer for 15 minutes, but soccer is a 90-minute game,” Alukonis said. “Hopefully we don’t ever play like we did against Maryland again.”
Against the Terrapins, Duke fell into its pattern of developing a lot of scoring chances, but not converting them, something the Blue Devils hope to avoid Sunday.
“We’re looking to go out there and win.... Winning cures all evils,” sophomore Cody Newman said.
With more energy on the field, the team hopes to perform better than it has for the past three games and show that it is capable of battling with the best.
“By doing our best and playing together, we can compete with the best teams in the country,” Alukonis said. “Florida State is a team respected by everyone in the country, and it would be great to come away from the game with a win.”
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