Duke is set to take on High Point to tomorrow in just the second matchup between the teams in program history.
The No. 7 Blue Devils will travel to High Point, N.C. to play the Panthers 6 p.m. Wednesday at Vert Stadium. After a tough loss Saturday against No. 3 Syracuse that put the Duke at .500 in conference play, the team will look for a confidence-boosting victory before it continues its ACC slate this weekend with games against Boston College and Notre Dame.
“These next couple games for us will help us to get a good judgment on what we need to fix before the end of the season when ACCs and national championship time comes around,” junior attacker Kerrin Maurer said. “The Syracuse game was tough, but now’s a good time to learn about our opponents and ourselves before it really matters.”
The Blue Devils (7-4) have been streaky thus far, easily dismantling Virginia Tech and Davidson squads but going 1-4 against ranked opponents. In order to compete with the Blue Devils, High Point (4-4) will rely on its stingy defense as the Panthers have held their opponents to an average of 9.5 goals so far this season. Panther goalie Julia Burns ranks among the top 30 nationally in save percentage.
The Blue Devils will look for their well-balanced offense to lead them against the Panthers.
Maurer is Duke’s primary offensive option, notching 35 goals this year so far—and scoring multiple times in every game. The junior ranks third in the conference and seventh in the nation in goals per game.
But Maurer has six other teammates who have scored in double digits this season, notably midfielder Taylor Trimble and attackers Sydney Peterson and Kelci Smesko.
“Every game I try to just play as best I can,” Maurer said. “Against these teams that are not as strong as ranked opponents, it’s a good test to keep our offense sharp and see what we need to work on. For me personally, I try to treat every game and team equally, so for tomorrow it’s going to be more about our team offense.”
Having beaten High Point 16-7 in Durham last season, Duke has built a 16-0 all-time record against Big South opponents, but the matchup against this year’s Panther squad could present the conference’s best chance to upset the Blue Devils.
High Point leads the Big South in scoring defense, allowing 9.50 goals per game, and on offense the Panthers boast two potent scoring threats in senior midfielder Alec Perry and senior attacker Mackenzie Carroll.
The 5-foot-2 Carroll leads the Panthers in total points with 13 goals and 9 assists, and her classmate Perry has posted a shots-on-goal percentage of 93.5% through her team’s eight games this season. Junuior attacker Kendyl Gardner has also reached double digit scoring levels—notching 11 goals-—but has not recorded an assist on the year.
High Point’s program launched in 2009 and is the latest in a series of young teams that the Blue Devils have faced. Earlier in the season Duke knocked off a first-year Elon program 25-4 in the season opener.
“What’s unique about playing young teams is that you don’t know much about them,” Maurer said. “We don’t know the tendencies that we can judge from past years. Any given day, any team can win, and we know that High Point is very athletic and fast. We can’t take them lightly.”
After dropping to 2-2 in ACC play, the Blue Devils cannot afford to lose a game to an unranked opponent. Against the Orange, Duke fell behind by a large margin, trailing 18-9 with less than 10 minutes to go in the contest after having led 3-1 early on.
The Blue Devils three other games following their contest against High Point come against top-10 opponents—Boston College ranks fifth, Notre Dame ranks sixth and North Carolina holds the nation’s top ranking at the moment. A win Wednesday would improve Duke’s perspective for the tough upcoming week.
“[A win] would give us great confidence,” Maurer said. “High Point is a great opponent and they’ve been very close with a lot of top teams. Playing sharp, playing together will give us good momentum going into the weekend. Giving us confidence will be huge.”
Get The Chronicle straight to your inbox
Signup for our weekly newsletter. Cancel at any time.