Despite their continued display of offensive firepower, the Blue Devils were unable to stop the attack of the Nittany Lions.
No. 22 Duke was forced to play catch-up throughout the game as No. 7 Penn State repeatedly regained a one-goal advantage en route to claiming a 4-3 win at Koskinen Stadium to cap the Duke Nike Classic Sunday.
The defeat ended a three-game winning streak for the Blue Devils.
“It’s a tough one to swallow,” head coach Robbie Church said. "We did a lot of things well today, especially offensively. But I’m really disappointed in how we defended. We have got work to do on the defensive end all over the field from the goalkeeper, our backs to the midfielder... You can’t give soft goals against quality opponents.”
Duke first responded to Penn State’s initial goal when senior midfielder Kelly Cobb fired a strike past Nittany Lion goalkeeper Britt Eckerstrom to tie the game at one.
The blast was Cobb’s fourth goal in her last three games. She was named the Offensive Most Valuable Player of the tournament for her dominant performances against Penn State and Arkansas Friday night.
“I think I’ve been fortunate to be in the right places at the right time,” Cobb said.
The Blue Devils would go down 2-1 when the Nittany Lions scored with 13 minutes left in the first half.
In the 54th minute, sophomore Rebecca Quinn juked a defender and sent a right-footed shot past Eckerstrom's outstretched arms to tie the game back up at 2-2. The score was her first goal of the season.
Despite Cobb and Quinn's heroics, frequent lapses in communication among Duke defenders were evident, namely on the Nittany Lions' third goal. Blue Devil goalkeeper Ali Kershner and sophomore defender Lizzy Raben collided deep within the penalty box as they tried to defend a Penn State attack.
“Things happen,” Kershner said. “The game is moving pretty fast, but I saw it coming across, thought I could step in front and there was a little collision.”
Following the third lead change, Duke demonstrated its resiliency and willingness to fight.
With 21 minutes remaining, Christina Gibbons was pushed and fouled as freshman defender Morgan Reid took a free kick. Gibbons converted on the ensuing penalty kick with an easy shot into the right side of the net.
Much to Blue Devils' dismay, they were unable to rebound from Penn State’s fourth goal with less than seven minutes left. Two quick passes allowed for an unmarked Raquel Rodriguez to leak through Duke’s last line of defenders and power the winning shot past Kershner.
The surrender of multiple soft Nittany Lion goals was an indicator of the youth in the Blue Devils' rotation. The experience of Duke’s defense has been a question mark since the beginning of the season.
“We’re young, but that’s no longer an excuse,” Kershner said. "We need to be better. We need to be working as a team and as one unit. Our defense just has to match our [offense].”
The loss will provide the Blue Devils with opportunities to learn and mature as they review their performance. The defensive execution will be a focus for Duke throughout the season, as it has been outward about its hopes to compete for ACC and NCAA championships.
“We will see some things on tape that will help us going forward,” Church said. “They turned our backs more than any other team that we played all year.”
Sunday's defeat can only increase the confidence on the offensive end, as the Blue Devils have consistently demonstrated that they can score against some of the best competition in the country.
“I think on offense as a whole, we’re very creative and we’re very dangerous on both sides,” Cobb said.
Both the coaching staff and players are aware of how important it will be for them to bounce back in their next two games against Hofstra and LSU before they begin ACC play.
Get The Chronicle straight to your inbox
Signup for our weekly newsletter. Cancel at any time.