With less than three minutes left in regulation, it seemed as though freshman phenom Kelly Cobb had scored yet another game winner for Duke. She took a pass near the middle of the goal, turned and shot the ball with her left foot, sending the ball beyond the goalkeeper. But for the second time in the game, Cobb would be denied by the crossbar.
After two periods of extra time, neither the No. 4 Blue Devils (11-1-1, 3-0-1 in the ACC) nor the No. 13 Cavaliers (8-2-2, 2-1-1) were able to put the ball in the back of the net. The game ended 0-0, with Duke maintaining its streak of eight games without a loss.
“It was a heck of an exciting nil-nil [game],” Duke head coach Robbie Church said.
It was not without chances, however, as both teams had 20 shots throughout the game, putting both defenses to the test. Duke goalkeeper Tara Campbell recorded her eighth shutout of the season, with a season-high eight saves.
Cavalier goalkeeper Chantel Jones, who Church acknowledged as one of the best in the nation, had only four saves in the 110 minutes played. The number of saves, however, do not tell how close the game was.
“If you look at the statistics of that game it might come across a little lopsided,” Campbell said. “I think we were really unlucky not to have a goal.”
The match started slowly, without any clear chances in the opening 30 minutes. It was with 16 minutes remaining in the first half that the game’s first clear chance arrived, with Duke’s Kaitlyn Kerr shooting just wide of the post.
That seemed to be the signal to attack, with Virginia’s Caroline Miller, the current ACC player of the week, combining well with teammate Erica Hellenberg, who made a strong run from midfield and shot the ball just over the bar.
The star of the game was undoubtedly Cobb, who took a career-high eight shots but could not convert. She was close to breaking the deadlock at the end of the first half, twisting and turning past two defenders before putting a shot mere inches above the top left corner.
Cobb was all over the pitch. In another of the Blue Devils’ chances, the striker ran up the defensive line, avoiding the offside call, and called for the ball. Upon receiving it, she turned and hit the ball towards goal. Her shot would rattle the crossbar.
“Sometimes you just have bad luck with shooting,” Cobb said. “I think every striker has an off day and unfortunately mine was today.”
Led by Natasha Anasi, who drew praise from Church for her play, the Duke defense held firm against the Cavalier attack.
Although the Blue Devils had possession for many parts of the game, Campbell was alert when needed, diving low to her right to stop a shot with less than four minutes left in regulation, and acrobatically tipping a shot over the crossbar with a minute remaining in overtime.
“I’m pretty good at staying focused,” Campbell said. “I played on a really talented club team when I was younger, where I would stand around for much of the game without getting the ball.”
Despite Campbell’s focus, Duke ends up with a draw where on any other night, it may well have been a victory.
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