If there’s a way to start a soccer season, it’s Ulfur Bjornsson’s way.
The sophomore striker carried No. 20 Duke through its first two games of the season with a four-goal performance in the team’s trip to the West Coast. The Blue Devils (1-0-1) took on San Diego Thursday and UC San Diego Sunday; they tied the first match 2-2 and won the second 3-2.
It was a beautiful goal. Senior midfielder Felix Barajas sent the ball to Bjornsson through a small crowd of Toreros. The Iceland native tapped the ball just once before sending it in an arc that soared perfectly out of everyone’s reach — for a near 30 yards — and then landed, miraculously, in the back corner of the net.
"What's interesting for strikers is that they get in a hot streak," said head coach John Kerr, "and they feel so good that everything they shoot is going to go in."
The Blue Devils followed Bjornsson as he raced to a far corner of San Diego’s field, jumping on top of the striker as he covered his face with his hands in disbelief.
That was Bjornsson’s first goal of the California trip; the rest came Sunday. Only 17 minutes had passed in the first half of the matchup against UC San Diego when junior midfielder Drew Kerr crossed to Bjornsson, who sent the ball forcefully past Triton goalkeeper Nolan Premack. Quickly, the home team answered, scoring less than three minutes later with a header on new Duke goalie Wessel Speel.
"Our defenders need to do a better job in front of [Speel]," Kerr said Wednesday. "We've gone over that the past couple of days, since the weekend, about defending with a little bit more intensity in and around the goal area."
Luckily for Duke's defense, Bjornsson instantly shut down the Tritons' attempt to put the game back on even footing. Drew Kerr sent the ball to graduate transfer Hudson Hazlewood, whose left-footed effort failed to escape Premack. Junior forward Jose Ortega, however, found the ball as it bounced back out of the goal, kicking it to Bjornsson — who went for a quasi-bicycle-kick move that put him briefly on the ground and the ball in the right corner of the goal. Only 21:48 was gone from the game, and Duke led 2-1.
The Blue Devils were never short on effort in this match; they combined for 20 shots, 12 of which landed on goal. If it hadn’t been for heroic goalkeeping on Premack’s part, the Tritons would have seen a far larger gap in the final score. Kerr feels confident in his attacking lineup, and looks to graduate forward Adam Luckhurst as well as Bjornsson to lead the offensive charge this season. "Those guys are going to score goals," he said.
UC San Diego, for its part, only took 6 shots; its two on-goal attempts both went in, as Speel made zero saves to Premack’s nine.
Bjornsson earned his hat trick in the 66th minute. Raleigh native and graduate transfer Colton Pleasants took a wicked shot at the goal, which Premack dived to save, and did so successfully. He didn’t keep hold of the ball, though, and as it rolled out of his gloves, Bjornsson sprinted forward and angled it into the corner of the net.
Leading 3-1, the Blue Devils looked for a slow end to the match. They didn’t find one, however, thanks to Triton midfielder Andrew McGee, who snuck a goal past Speel with six minutes left to play. His efforts energized UC San Diego, and the Tritons spent the last few minutes of the game fighting with all they had for an equalizer. Luckily for the Blue Devils, the home team couldn’t find another opportunity to fire at Speel, and the game ended with Duke’s first victory of the season.
In Thursday's game, the Toreros finished the first half with a one-goal advantage. "It's disappointing," Kerr said, "that we're going to give up goals in those areas of the field where we have numbers. We have to be a little bit more defensive minded and a little bit more intense in and around those areas."
Halftime, however, lit up the visiting team: Ortega scored off a Bjornsson assist barely two minutes into the second half.
Seven minutes later, Bjornsson scored that beautiful goal.
If Niclas Wittur hadn’t accidentally knocked over San Diego’s Samy Kanaan in the box, Duke would have had the game. But the Toreros drew a penalty — and the Blue Devils heatedly protested it — which Simon Duus Muller slammed into the left side of the goal before Speel registered where the ball was going. The game ended in a draw.
For Kerr, the season’s first two games accomplished exactly what they were supposed to. He was able to identity the players he wants to keep on the field, and those who face a few weeks of hard work to prepare for conference play. That will all continue Friday, when the team takes on Grand Canyon at WakeMed Soccer Park, and Kerr gets to see an old colleague in George Kiefer — former head coach at N.C. State, now at the helm of the Antelopes' program. The Blue Devils then face Averett Sunday in Koskinen Stadium.
Get The Chronicle straight to your inbox
Signup for our weekly newsletter. Cancel at any time.
Sophie Levenson is a Trinity junior and a sports managing editor of The Chronicle's 120th volume.