The bell of the Blue Zone stock exchange has
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Duke women’s lacrosse: Winless and toothless, the Blue Devils had looked lost in ACC play so far this year—until Saturday.
After a 2-6 slump left them in danger of not making the NCAA tournament, they bounced back with a 15-12 upset victory
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Duke men’s lacrosse defense: After giving up 14 goals to Denver Feb. 18, Duke’s defense was vulnerable, at best.
But since then, the Blue Devils have rebounded to give up just 7.4 goals per game en route to winning seven of eight contests. A young defensive group with just one senior starter has blossomed in front of head coach John Danowski’s eyes, leading Duke to another impressive win Sunday,
The Blue Devils held the Fighting Irish to just five goals in the first
“[The defensive development] is a culmination of a couple of new people.... You’ve got a couple of freshmen, a transfer, a sophomore, who are terrific athletes,” Danowski said after the game. “And then you’ve got guys with experience.... It’s this combination of these older guys who’ve played a lot for us and the younger athletic guys. It’s growing.”
Ryan Day: A junior, Day had been a lights-out reliever in his first two years in Durham, but little was known about his ability to start games.
As Duke’s weekend starter, Day has left no questions about that, leading the staff with a 2.11 ERA in seven starts. With Mitch Stallings and Adam Laskey struggling at the front end of the rotation for the Blue Devils, the Phelan, Calif., native has provided the team with some much-needed stability on the hill.
A sinker-baller, Day induced 13 ground balls against Miami Monday en route to a nearly perfect seven-inning line, facing just two more batters than the minimum in a scoreless outing.
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Duke bullpen: While Day has shone in the rotation, the bullpen has suffered without him this season. Stallings and his relievers squandered a 7-0 lead with just nine outs left in the game against Miami Saturday, with junior Jack Labosky giving up a walk-off three-run home run to Johnny Ruiz to fall 9-7.
The relief corps nearly squandered Day’s sparkling outing Sunday, with Nick Hendrix giving up two runs in the eighth inning to send the game into extra innings. Duke’s offense bailed out the graduate student by scoring three runs in the tenth to walk away from Coral Gables, Fla., with a victory in hand, but bullpen consistency remains an issue going forward.
"It's been a concern, it's not a secret," Pollard said. "We just have to continue to work to get better and work on different options to try and find the right formula down there. Consistency has been the issue. We've had a ton of guys that have thrown the ball really well, it's just a matter of getting consistent outings."
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Managing Editor 2018-19, 2019-2020 Features & Investigations Editor
A member of the class of 2020 hailing from San Mateo, Calif., Ben is The Chronicle's Towerview Editor and Investigations Editor. Outside of the Chronicle, he is a public policy major working towards a journalism certificate, has interned at the Tampa Bay Times and NBC News and frequents Pitchforks.