KENNESAW, Ga. -- The Blue Devils practiced for the final time in 2011 this afternoon in preparation for their 1 p.m. national championship contest against undefeated Stanford tomorrow. Before Duke took to the expertly manicured practice field at KSU Soccer Stadium, home of the WPS's Atlanta Beat, a few members of the team participated in a press conference for the media. Here are some of the more interesting things they said:
Head coach Robbie Church on his team's slow start against Wake Forest Friday:
"Thank goodness for TV timeouts. It was loud and couldn’t get instructions out there or maybe they just weren’t listening."
Church on Stanford's team balance:
"They’ve got great attacking players. They are very solid in the midfield. They are very talented individuals both offensively and defensively. I thought their goalkeeper played really well yesterday. They are a great team. Obviously, they wouldn’t be undefeated if they weren’t."
Church on the inspiration for Duke's attacking brand of soccer:
"Right now my favorite team is Barcelona. I love how they play, and we’re not quite Barcelona yet. But, you know we are trying to play like that."
Junior fullback Maddy Haller on the contributions of assistant coach Carla Overbeck:
"I think early on in my first two years here on the defensive line, we got away with a lot of little mistakes. I think now that we have been here for a few years, she expects a lot more of us."
Junior Midfielder Nicole Lipp on coming to Duke to win the school's first national championship:
"Being the first to do that, makes this feel really special, and I definitely want to be a part of that. I saw potential and I thought being in the top 10 for four years, it would be great getting the first national championship. It would be awesome."
Be sure to check The Blue Zone regularly for additional coverage of the women's College Cup, and join us tomorrow at 1 p.m. for a live blog of the national championship game.
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