The final weekend of the season is no longer complete without an appearance from Duke.
The fifth-seeded Blue Devils (14-4) took down North Carolina, 17-9, Saturday at Princeton Stadium to return to the Final Four for the fourth consecutive year and fifth time in six seasons. The win ensures that no member of Duke’s current roster, including head coach John Danowski, has ever failed to reach the national semifinals.
“It’s unreal,” senior defenseman Parker McKee said. “Looking back at the four years, we exceeded all expectations.”
The Blue Devils had the added benefit of defeating their crosstown rival en route to the Final Four. Duke also beat the Tar Heels last season in the national quarterfinals.
“To get to the tournament is a huge deal, to get to the quarterfinals is a huge deal, but then you throw in the fact that it’s North Carolina, that definitely adds a little something that no other team could add,” senior Ned Crotty said. “Any time you get to end a huge rival’s season, it’s something you really look forward to doing.”
The No. 4 Tar Heels (13-3) were favored entering the contest, boasting a 13-7 victory over the Blue Devils in March that snapped an 11-game Duke winning streak. But in the rematch, North Carolina was outclassed on both ends of the field and never held the lead after the opening period.
On the first possession of the game, the Blue Devil defense held strong for three minutes, forcing a stall warning and resisting a number of different looks from the Tar Heel attack. The play set the tone for the rest of the contest, as Duke effectively stifled North Carolina’s ball movement and prevented close shots.
“Early in the game we were able to get stops,” said McKee, who picked up four ground balls. “The first possession, they threw three or four plays at us and we were able to not only get stops but to get a look at what they were going to do for the rest of the game. That was a huge possession for us to withstand.”
The Blue Devils still face question marks in the goal, as junior Mike Rock was replaced by freshman Dan Wigrizer—who started the majority of the team’s games this year—before the end of the first half, and both goalies had trouble saving long-range strikes. Nevertheless, the defense kept the Blue Devils in the game early, and the team’s offense and control of the faceoff game led Duke to victory.
After putting up only two goals in the first quarter, the Blue Devils exploded for seven in the second. The team had great success inverting the ball to Crotty behind the cage and letting the Tewaaraton Trophy finalist find the open man or turn the corner for an easy strike. Crotty had three assists and three goals to lead all scorers with six points, including three points in the second period as Duke took a 9-6 lead into halftime.
The Tar Heels responded to the Blue Devils’ adept passing by moving into a zone, but Duke countered by using its speed on offense. Steve Schoeffel and sophomore Justin Turri were each able to take their man one-on-one to get uncontested shots, and North Carolina was slow to rotate on defense. The pair scored two goals each, and each chipped in one assist during the team’s 6-0 run spanning the third and fourth quarters.
That decisive spurt was made possible by strong faceoff play. The Blue Devils won 18-of-28 draws, including 17-of-23 after the first quarter, and the team’s midfielders led the transition offense for quick strikes. Sophomore CJ Costabile was lethal at the X, winning 7-of-9 faceoffs and taking two balls all the way for scores.
“Today you saw the true Duke team,” McKee said. “Our faceoff game was awesome and we had a whole bunch of guys contribute.”
The Blue Devils will now face No. 1 Virginia (16-1) at M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore Saturday at 6:30 p.m. Duke is still seeking the program’s first national title, and after three consecutive empty trips, senior Max Quinzani believes that the team is finally peaking at the right time, with wins in 12 of the past 13 games after a slow start.
“It took us some time to get our legs under us, took us some time to get our confidence and to gel as an offense,” said Quinzani, who scored three goals against North Carolina to become the second-leading scorer in NCAA history. “Now we have confidence when we hold the ball, now we wait for the good shot—the best shot.
“This is the team that is trending to excellence when it counts. We’re finding our stride and we’re playing with confidence…. I think it’s the first time we’ve hit our stride at this particular part of the season.”
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