A season during which Duke defeated nearly every team it should have and lost to only the best teams in the country came to an unsatisfying conclusion. The Blue Devils were beaten by No. 24 Tennessee 3-1 in the first round of the NCAA tournament Friday at Thompson-Boling Arena in Knoxville, Tenn.
Duke (27-6) struggled early and late against a Lady Volunteer squad buoyed by its home crowd, as Tennessee (24-7) took the first set 25-18. The Blue Devils dropped a close second before winning the third, only to fall behind in the final set for a decisive 25-12 loss.
The Blue Devils were undone by Tennessee middle blocker Leah Hinkey, who recorded 10 blocks and seven kills on the night.
Hinkey’s strong net play severely limited Duke’s offense, and the Blue Devils hit a measly .146 against an aggressive Lady Volunteer front line that registered 17.5 blocks to Duke’s nine.
“There was never any moment where we weren’t playing our game,” senior Rachael Moss said. “But Tennessee’s defense was very good and tight and I think they stopped us very well…. We played well but at the same time they played very well.”
The attacks the Blue Devils were able to complete successfully came from, as usual, Moss and junior Becci Burling, who both recorded 12 kills against the Lady Volunteers. Moss and Burling ended the season as Duke’s leaders in kills, and Moss’s 13 digs also gave the senior her 14th double-double of the season.
However, the pair’s efforts were not enough to send the Blue Devils into at least the second round for the fifth straight year. The first game of the evening set the tone for the match: After trailing by as many as five points early, Duke trimmed the deficit to two at 17-15, but notched only three more points as Tennessee took the set, 25-18.
The second set was tighter all the way through, and the Blue Devils led 21-18 at one point. The Volunteers fought back to tie the score at 23, and earned the last two points to give themselves a 2-0 cushion.
“We had our opportunities and that second game we were up for a majority of it,” head coach Jolene Nagel said. “If we could have won that game going into the third game I think things could have changed.”
A 9-1 run in the third set, keyed by Burling, gave Duke a 25-17 win, yet that victory proved meaningless when Tennessee came out for the fourth set. The Lady Volunteers dominated proceedings and jumped out to a massive 12-point lead, and a late attempt at a comeback by the Blue Devils fell well short to push them out of the tournament.
Duke can consider itself unlucky to have had to play its first-round matchup essentially on the road. The Volunteers hosted the four-team regional even though they were not the highest-seeded of the four. That honor belonged to No. 11 Minnesota, which defeated Louisville earlier Friday to advance to the second round.
Nagel was disappointed with the loss, but praised Moss and the rest of the departing senior class for its performance Friday and on the season.
“Each day in practice they approached the demands that were put on them, both academically and in volleyball,” Nagel said of her seniors. “Their attitudes and team mentality really influenced the culture our team and they are leaving a great legacy for us.”
Caroline Fairchild contributed reporting to this story.
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