Duke walked into Charlottesville, Va. on an eight-game win streak, but without a marquee victory to its name. It leaves having knocked off the top team in the nation, an undefeated Virginia squad looking to beat Duke for the first time in seven years.
The No. 5 Blue Devils did more than just defeat the Cavaliers in their 13-9 victory Saturday night. They dominated Virginia in all facets of the game and head back to Durham with a newfound confidence.
The Cavaliers (11-1, 2-1 in the ACC) scored the first three goals of the game before Duke (11-3, 1-2) got on the scoreline. Senior Steve Schoeffel found redshirt sophomore Justin Turri in front of the Cavaliers’ net for Duke’s first goal with just more than a minute remaining in the first period.
“[The goal] was big because the longer it takes to get the first one, it seems like you’re never going to score,” head coach John Danowski said. “Psychologically and emotionally, I think the guys really did settle down and take a deep breath and said, ‘It’s going to be okay.’ If you had said to me at that moment, ‘You’re going to score 13 goals tonight,’ I would have said, ‘You’re crazy. That’s not going to happen.’ It was an emotional goal for everyone.”
Just 14 seconds into the second quarter, Turri struck again, this time off a pass from senior Parker McKee. Two minutes later, senior Ned Crotty got in on the action with his 12th goal of the year.
On the next Blue Devil possession, Crotty was knocked down in the offensive zone and flipped a pass towards the front of the net. Senior Will McKee grabbed the bouncing ball and scored the Blue Devils’ fourth goal of the game.
The Cavaliers were not prepared to lose their undefeated season easily. Virginia ended the half with three goals of its own to give it a 6-5 lead at halftime.
After the break, Crotty showed why he is one the leading candidates for the Tewaaraton trophy, given to the nation’s best player. The senior entered the game leading the country in assists, and in response, the Virginia defense backed off him and played the passing lanes, hoping to limit Crotty’s playmaking ability. Instead, Crotty adjusted his game and attacked the net, scoring two more goals within the first five minutes of the second half to put the Blue Devils up 7-6.
“They were playing him to be a feeder, so Ned just recognized what the opponent was doing,” Danowski said. “He knew he had to go to the goal. He played like a senior and not only scored goals, but made a lot of great decisions with the ball.”
Duke continued its domination throughout the third quarter, scoring two more goals, and emerged with a 9-7 lead. At the beginning of the fourth period, the Blue Devils ensured that Virginia wasn’t going to save its perfect season.
Sophomore CJ Costabile took the faceoff to start the final 15 minutes, and after a tough battle, won the draw. Costabile then dished the ball off to junior Zach Howell, who fired it past Virginia goalie Adam Ghitelman for his first goal of the game to give the Blue Devils a three-goal advantage.
A minute later, Quinzani sprinted around the net and bounced a shot past Ghitelman for his second goal of the game. Just 22 seconds after that, Howell added his second score, and Duke never looked back.
After a tough start to the game, Duke dominated the final three quarters. The defense shut down the Virginia midfield throughout the entire second half, surrendering just 11 shots and three goals in the final 30 minutes.
But though the victory was big for the Blue Devils, the team knows that it still has a lot left to play for this season.
“It’s a big win because of confidence,” Howell said. “I don’t think we get much further than that, because we have to get up and play them again on Friday in the ACC tournament.”
After Saturday’s performance, Friday can’t get here quick enough.
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