The 1983 men’s soccer season was John Kerr’s first playing as a Blue Devil. It was also Louisville head coach Ken Lolla’s last season as a Duke soccer player. This Saturday, the former teammates will meet on the field again as their squads go head to head in Louisville, Ky.
The Blue Devils are set to play the No. 5 Cardinals this Saturday Sept. 13 at 7:30 p.m. at the new Dr. Mark and Cindy Lynn Stadium. Duke is coming off a 3-1 victory against Temple, and Louisville is seeking to bounce back after a 1-0 road loss to St. Louis Tuesday night. Both teams will be looking for their first conference win in the 2014 ACC season opener.
“They come from a big, tough conference—the Big East—and they’re used to it,” Kerr said. “We have our work cut out for us.”
The Cardinals (1-1-1), who dropped from No. 2 to No. 5 in SoccerAmerica’s Top 25, will look to sophomore midfielder Andrew Brody and junior forward Ricardo Velazco to end their two-game goal-scoring dry streak. Brody scored a game-winning goal against Maryland, whereas Velazco has had 12 shots this season but is yet to find the back of the net.
On the other side of the pitch, Duke (2-1-1) freshman midfielder Cameron Moseley is already making a name for himself with four goals in the past three games.
“[Moseley] is a force,” Kerr said. ”He is doing great, and is improving by the minute. He is really helping out… with his defensive play—putting pressure on the defenders, and forcing them to play it earlier than they want to. If he can continue that work rate, we’re gonna be in good shape.”
Moseley scored two goals against Temple in addition to his two goals against Stetson in the Aug. 31 8-2 blowout. Alongside Moseley, Blue Devil senior Sean Davis will help guide the team and set the tone for the match.
Kerr said that the team needs to bring the same level of intensity Saturday that it played with against the Owls. Davis has three assists already, and is a key facilitator for the offense.
Although Louisville’s record doesn’t reflect it, it has only allowed one goal this season. The Cardinals’ tie came from a scoreless gridlock with Cornell.
If Duke wants to start this ACC season with a winning record, it will have to break through a Louisville defense led by senior defender Daniel Keller. Keller is coming off of a strong junior season in which he started all but one game. The Carmel, Ind., native will be key in holding off the Blue Devils’ various offensive advances.
“We’ve played four different formations so far this season,” Kerr said. “We have a various array of formations that we can play and we just haven’t figured out which one we’re gonna employ against Louisville. We might change it within the game too.”
In Louisville, a brand new stadium awaits. The Dr. Mark and Cindy Lynn Stadium was based on Sporting Kansas City’s stadium. The first match at the $18.5 million complex was played Aug. 29, when the Cardinals notched a 1-0 victory against then-No. 2 Maryland.The stadium welcomed more than 7,000 electric fans for the season opener and the ACC opener against Duke should draw a comparable crowd. This could be distracting for the 13 Blue Devil freshmen on the team who haven’t experienced a college environment quite like this before.
“It’s going to be an electric atmosphere,” Kerr said. “We look forward to it. We like playing in a big, hostile atmosphere.”
Kerr isn’t just excited about the crowd though. As a member of Duke’s 1986 national championship team, he admits he might not have been a part of the squad had it not been for the encouragement of a certain Blue Devil.
“[Lolla] was one of the reasons I went to Duke,” Kerr said. “[He] had a great influence on my decision making to come and attend Duke.... [Lolla] is a very smart man and he has done great with the [Akron program] and then when he has arrived at Louisville, he’s done a superb job of producing players and really good teams.”
The last time the former teammates met was in a 2010 thriller in Durham that ended in a draw. In that game, Duke’s goalkeeper, James Belshaw, had 15 saves—including one penalty shot save. The game this Saturday may prove to be just as entertaining as the last meeting. Either Kerr or Lolla will walk away with the first win in a new and ecstatic rivalry that will continue for years to come as Louisville finds its place in the ACC.
Get The Chronicle straight to your inbox
Signup for our weekly newsletter. Cancel at any time.