The Blue Devils did not have enough in the tank to capture their second consecutive must-win game, as Duke’s season came to an end Friday.
Duke fell to No. 2 Florida State 2-0 Friday night at the Seminole Soccer Complex in Tallahassee, Fla. The loss snapped the Blue Devils’ streak of 11 consecutive berths in the NCAA tournament and closed a disappointing regular season.
“We knew last year when we lost five four-year starters that it was going to be a little bit of a different year this year,” head coach Robbie Church said. “We were just not as deep as other teams and we just ran out of gas at the end of the year.”
Duke’s struggles on the offensive end against ACC competition continued in Tallahassee. In past contests, Duke (8-9-1, 4-5-1 in the ACC) simply could not take advantage of opportune breakaways and openings. The season finale was the first match in which the Blue Devils failed to produce any opportunities to score.
“Up until Florida State, we’ve had really good opportunities,” Church said.“We just did not create the opportunities like we did in those other [games].”
From the onset of play, Duke’s defense was on its heels. Florida State (16-1-1, 9-0-1) controlled possession after two Duke corner kicks in the sixth minute. The Blue Devils benefited from several Seminole shots that went high or wide of the goal in the first 34 minutes.
Florida State finally converted in the 36th minute after midfielder Berglind Thorvaldsdottir received a pass from defender Meghan Campbell. Midfielder Dagny Brynjarsdottir then set up midfielder Marta Bakowska-Mathews for a diving header, which sailed past Duke goalkeeper Ali Kershner into the left side of the net.
By the end of the first half, Florida State had secured an 11-1 shot advantage. Duke’s lone attempt by freshman midfielder Ashton Miller was blocked by goalie Casie Miller.
“In the first half, we just did not keep possession,” Church said. “We defended really well, but you can’t just keep defending and defending.”
The Seminoles maintained their command in the second half but continued to struggle to put the ball in the back of the net.
With 15 minutes left to play, Duke still had a chance for a tie. Church decided to take a risk by adjusting his formation to allow the Blue Devils to push forward.
“Instead of a four-one-two-three…we went to a three-four-three,” Church said. “We weren’t going to play to lose the game 1-0, we were going to play to win the game.”
Church’s plan almost paid off when a header by junior Kara Wilson went wide of the goal in the 76th minute. But that was as close as the Blue Devils would get.
Florida State took advantage of Duke’s gamble with six minutes remaining in the contest. Duke goalie E.J. Proctor, who entered for Kershner earlier in the half, was unable to keep a strike by Brynjarsdottir out of the goal, as the ball hit off Proctor’s hands before crossing the plane.
“They burned us on the last goal late because we had a lot of people forward,” Church said. “But we’re always going to make those adjustments.”
By the end of the match, Duke had only garnered three shots on goal, two of which occurred in the last 15 minutes of regulation.
The shutout loss was Duke’s seventh of the year and led to an unfortunate spot in history for the squad. The Blue Devils ended the season with 22 goals scored—tying their 1998 output for the fewest goals scored in a single season.
Friday’s loss to Florida State was representative of the majority of Duke’s season. The Blue Devils avoided upsets to inferior opponents but could not capture a signature win against top competition like the Seminoles.
Despite the early end to his squad’s season, Church can look forward to 2015. Five of Duke’s top six goal scorers are set to return. Freshmen starters Morgan Reid, Imani Dorsey, Ashton Miller and Schuyler Debree will have a year of experience under their belts, and the team will be joined by one of the country’s top recruiting classes in 2015.
Redshirt sophomore midfielder Cassie Pecht—who missed her second-straight year after she was named Rookie of the Year in 2012—should be ready to return to the pitch next season. Redshirt sophomore defender Malinda Allen and freshman goalkeeper Abby Pyne are also expected to be available.
With the number of talented returners and incoming freshmen, this season should provide next year’s Blue Devils with all the fuel necessary to power a comeback season.
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