The last two years, Duke's bus rides home from the ACC tournament have been unhappy ones.
The Blue Devils lost to North Carolina by a single goal in 2007 in the ACC semifinals, and were beaten by Virginia by the same margin at the same stage last year.
Sunday afternoon, that unfortunate streak continued.
After leading by as many as four goals early in the second half, third-seeded Duke fell behind late against No. 1 Maryland and could not recover before time expired. The result was a hard-to-swallow 12-11 loss which gave the Terrapins their first conference championship since 2003.
"I'm really proud of our girls for showing a tremendous team effort today and playing three outstanding opponents in four days," Duke head coach Kerstin Kimel said. "Maryland is a fantastic team, and in the end, another draw control here, a finished shot there, a better slide on defense-the little things made a difference at the end of the game."
Though the contest ended with a flurry of activity and, very nearly, a miraculous comeback by Duke (13-5), Maryland dominated the action in the early going. The Terrapins (18-0) jumped out to a 4-0 lead in the opening eight minutes, getting each goal from a different player. Kimel attributed that advantage to Maryland's ability to control possession in the midfield.
"It started with the draw. They were just gaining possession and working our defense, and any time they have possession, they are a threat to score," Kimel said. "I thought we were a little slow out of the gate today."
The rest of the first half, though, belonged to Duke. In a game full of runs, the Blue Devils scored eight straight times in a streak that lasted nearly 30 minutes and spanned halftime. With 23:42 left in the game, Duke held a four-goal lead, which represented the Terrapins' largest deficit all season.
Midfielder Sarah Bullard, who scored four times on the day, credited the success in that stretch to good technique and proper spacing in the attacking zone. She said the Blue Devils did well in stretching the Maryland defense, which opened up space for Duke's attacking players.
That success was short lived, however, and the Terrapins tallied eight of the next nine goals in the game. Behind four second-half scores from Caitlyn McFadden, Maryland opened up a 12-9 advantage with less than three minutes left. McFadden threatened the Blue Devil net from all over the field Sunday, including from the wing and from free-position opportunities.
"She is just somebody who goes really hard," Kimel said of McFadden. "She is a great player and there had to be a point when stepped up and put her team on her back."
The Blue Devils scored twice late and nearly tied the game, but the Terrapins held on for the win.
"I don't think we ever thought the game was beyond us," Bullard said. "It's tough when the team comes back on you like that, but that's exactly what we did to them in the first half. We definitely did not give up, as evidenced by the fact that we almost came back and pulled it out."
The ultimate prize of an ACC title, though, eluded Duke Sunday in yet another one-goal defeat.
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