COLLEGE PARK, Md. — Six days after snapping Virginia’s 11-game winning streak, Duke got a taste of its own medicine.
The Blue Devils fell 16-12 in the semifinals of the ACC Tournament Friday in a game that wasn’t as close as the final score would indicate.
“We certainly tip our caps to the University of Virginia, coach Dom Starsia and his staff,” head coach John Danowski said. “They did a fabulous job. Their kids were hungry, they played hard, with a tremendous amount of poise and a tremendous amount of skill. They really whipped us going away.”
Duke’s loss not only broke its nine-game winning streak, but it marked the Blue Devils’ first loss against the Cavaliers since 2004. Virginia (12-1, 2-1 in the ACC) had lost the previous eight matchups against Duke (11-4, 1-2) while going 80-8 against all other opponents in that time.
That impressive recent history didn’t matter Friday. After falling behind 3-0 last Saturday, Duke turned it around and took control with solid play down the middle of the field from its faceoff specialists and goalies. The Blue Devils won 17-of-25 faceoffs that game—including all six in the third quarter—and played effective ball control offense, helping freshman goalie Dan Wigrizer hold the Cavaliers’ powerful offense to single digits for only the second time in the season.
This time, Duke actually jumped out to a 4-0 lead 10 minutes into the game, but it was Virginia that dominated the center of the field to put the game away early. The Cavaliers went 22-of-32 on faceoffs in the rematch, and, as the Blue Devils did six days ago, did not allow their opponent to win a faceoff in the third quarter.
The Cavaliers’ momentum continued into the second half, as they outscored Duke 7-2 before allowing three meaningless goals in the final minutes.
“It feels good to finally get one,” Virginia defensivemen Ken Clausen said. “They’re always one of the best teams in the country…. We played our hearts out and things seemed to go well when we did that.”
Duke’s top faceoff specialist, senior Sam Payton, missed last week’s game and still couldn’t take face-offs because of a lingering foot injury. Last week, sophomore CJ Costabile stepped in admirably, winning 10-of-13 faceoffs and earning ACC Player of the Week for his efforts. Costabile went 5-of-14 and Duke’s other faceoff specialist, senior Terrence Molinari, who went 7-of-12 on Saturday, was only 4-of-12 this time around.
“They were really hungry,” Danowski said. “Their wing guys did a great job of picking up the ball. They were a step ahead of us all day.”
Virginia’s goalie, junior Adam Ghitelman, had a spectacular game with 12 saves, four ground ball pickups and even a goal on an incredible 60 yard shot from just outside the Virginia box.
On the other end of the field, Duke goalie Dan Wigrizer struggled. He let in 14 goals and was pulled twice in favor of junior backup Mike Rock.
“You get to a point, you give up a whole bunch of goals, and you’re a freshman… you don’t feel so good,” Danowski said. “[The goalie switch] was more for the future. I didn’t want him to give up 18 or 19 goals and I don’t think that would have been good for his ego.”
After the game, Wigrizer acknowledged that Danowski made the right choice.
“You’ve got to respect the coach’s decision,” Wigrizer said. “The whole aspect about letting goals in, I want to eventually be a great goalie. The only way to do that is to… just move on to the next game. The only way to excel in the next game is to forget about letting in 14 goals. I thank the coach—he didn’t give me an opportunity to let in more than 14 goals. It was an excellent decision.”
Get The Chronicle straight to your inbox
Signup for our weekly newsletter. Cancel at any time.