Two of the best defense and goalkeeper tandems in the country resembled brick walls on either side of the field, making it impossible for the offenses to find good shots to take, let alone find the back of the net Friday.
On a hot day at Shaw Field in the nation’s capital, No. 11 Duke faced off in a close matchup against Georgetown. After a full 90 minutes of play and two overtime periods, the game resulted in a 0-0 draw, with neither team able to get past the stingy defenses.
“I knew that the defenders and the rest of the team had my back...I knew that if I messed up or played a bad back they would be there to recover for me,” redshirt sophomore goalkeeper Brooke Heinsohn said. “[Senior defender Chelsea Burns], after the game just kind of like laid on the ground and I could tell she left everything on the field.”
Contrary to the box score which showed 24 and 15 total shots from the 15th-ranked Hoyas (1-0-2) and Blue Devils respectively, both defensive lines made it difficult for any forwards to create open shots. On the minimal defensive breakdowns by Duke (1-1-1) which allowed for good offensive chances for Georgetown, Heinsohn was there to clean it up, notching a season-high 10 saves. Heinsohn, who did not play her best in the team’s loss against Illinois last week, impressed her teammates and coaches alike with her poise—this is her first season as a starter for the Blue Devils.
“I thought she was there for us today and our line felt really, really confident that she was really tuned in,” head coach Robbie Church said. “We understand it’s going to take a while and she’s going to need some more experience, but she’s getting there. But I’m really proud of how she bounced back from a subpar game.”
Heinsohn wasn’t the only goalkeeper who had a career performance in Thursday’s match; Hoya goalie Arielle Schechtman had eight saves, which stopped the Blue Devil offense from executing as well as they would have liked.
There were a couple of moments throughout the game where it seemed like Duke could have turned a good pass or counter-attack into a goal, but the team’s lack of experience on the offensive side of the ball seemed to hinder them from doing so. With five freshmen starting in the team’s last game against Illinois, only Delaney Graham got the nod from Church in today’s starting lineup which still featured four sophomores who did not get much playing time last season.
“For them to play at this level for 90 minutes and play as hard as we need to play, it’s going to take some learning,” Church said. “They’re getting better, they’re very coachable...we’ve got a long way to go but we’re going to get there, we’re absolutely going to get there and this game gave us some hope moving forward.”
The team leaders like senior forward Kayla McCoy did play well, as McCoy stayed aggressive the entire game, putting up two shots, both on goal, forcing the Hoya defense to focus on her.
“She battles and fights every time out there,” Church said. “We got to get all our players to play like her. I know she’s frustrated because she’s a forward and doesn’t have goals yet but they’re coming, and they’re going to come in bunches.”
Duke will come back home and get a couple of days rest before facing off against Elon in Koskinen Stadium next Sunday at 5 p.m.
Correction: An earlier version of this story misstated Georgetown's nickname. It is the Hoyas. The Chronicle regrets the error.
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