Duke couldn’t have had a stronger start to its fall season at the Battle of the Banks tournament, winning against both Rutgers and St. Joseph’s on the road in Piscataway, N.J.
“I’m thrilled," head coach Pam Bustin said Sunday after the Blue Devils secured two tough overtime victories.
Friday afternoon, No. 18 Duke (2-0) faced No. 8 Rutgers (0-2) at Bauer Track and Field Complex—Rutgers' home field—and ultimately won 2-1 in a shootout. After two overtime periods with no scoring from either team, Rutgers and Duke both missed their first shootout attempt with the pressure mounting for either side to take their first win of the season.
Rutgers sophomore Iris Langejans then scored against Duke goalie Piper Hampsch, but the Blue Devils remained poised as senior midfielder Josie Varney returned the favor against Rutgers goalie Sophia Howard. Rutgers' Rachel Houston and Duke's Josephine Palde then traded goals to keep things tied.
With the shootout score tied at 2-2, it came down to Hampsch to make the difference, and she did just that. Rutgers’ Vicky Jure missed and gave Duke a chance to capitalize. Sophomore defender Shelby Bumgarner made the third goal to put the Blue Devils up 3-2 and Hampsch made a pair of saves to give Duke its first game of the weekend. Bustin said that “Piper had an outstanding weekend” and made "incredible saves."
The win against Rutgers marked Bustin’s 300th win in her coaching career. The longtime Duke coach said Sunday that she has “coached a lot of amazing student-athletes” and that while it was her 300th win, it was “number one for the 2021-22 season.”
The game was tight well before the decisive shootout. After a scoreless first quarter for both teams, Duke made the first goal off of a penalty corner. Senior forward Hannah Miller delivered and Palde attempted a shot that was blocked. Freshman Brynn Crouse was able to get the rebound and knocked it into the cage as the Blue Devils took a 1-0 lead.
Duke's upper hand did not last very long, because less than one minute later, Rutgers scored to tie the game, courtesy of senior Rachel Houston. Neither team scored until the shootout after that, as Hampsch had two major saves in overtime to prevent Rutgers from ever taking control.
Saturday, Duke faced No. 16 St. Joseph’s (1-1) and found itself in a competitive stalemate again, heading to another double overtime but ensuring that the game would not extend into a shootout. In double overtime, Miller pushed the offense and found Palde coming along the right side. Once Palde passed the goaltender, she had officially secured the win for the Blue Devils and the second game-winning goal of her career.
While the Blue Devils outshot St. Joseph’s 12-4 with seven penalty corners, they were unable to score in regulation. St. Joseph’s was kept from attempting a shot in the first half but was much more aggressive in the second half. Whenever Hampsch was at a possible disadvantage, her teammates were there with her. Specifically, as the Hawks attempted to capitalize off of a penalty corner, senior Mary Harkins was there to protect the goal line with Hampsch already beaten.
The two victories were Duke’s first consecutive overtime games to start the season since 2011 and were certainly statement wins as the Blue Devils ranked below both teams in preseason polls. Context from last year is important, as Duke fell to the bottom of the ACC while Rutgers won the Big Ten championship and St. Joseph's won the Atlantic 10. A 2-0 start against tough competition could be a sign that there will be positive change for the Blue Devils this season.
Duke will look to continue its strong start at the ACC/Big Ten Cup. The Blue Devils face No. 1 Northwestern in Newton, Mass., Friday at 3 p.m. and meet No. 4 Maryland at 12 p.m. Sunday.
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