Robbie Church is proud of his team’s hard work: He feels his players’ dedication is the key to their current success.
“They want to be great, and they work hard every single day,” the Duke head coach said. “They put the work in; they put the work in in training, and they put the work in in recovery.”
With hard work, No. 2 Duke secured its first home win against No. 25 Virginia since 2016 Thursday night at Koskinen Stadium. With a pass around the goalie eight minutes in and two headers in the second half, the Blue Devils scored the most goals they have against the Cavaliers since 2012, ending the game 3-1.
“They're confident, they believe in themselves, and they're composed in the scoring areas,” Church said.
Going into the match on a seven-game win streak, Duke (8-1, 3-0 in the ACC) clearly played with confidence. Quick passing out of the back and through the midfield, the Blue Devils looked calm and collected, leading to their first goal, scored by junior Farrah Walters. She took a big touch off of a pass from graduate student Maggie Graham to beat the last defender and goalie, using her pace. Slipping the ball into the back of the net, Walters secured her third goal of the season.
“Farrah gets her third, which was so good to see because she's been doing so many other great things on the field,” Church said. “I think she's going to be very important.”
Not three minutes into the second half, Mia Oliaro, transfer sophomore from North Carolina, scored Duke’s second goal. The bouncing header off of fifth-year Ella Hase’s cross from the left side gave the stands deja vu — the Blue Devils performed the same sequence in their last game, against SMU. Oliaro has been a standout player in recent matches, as this was her third goal in the past four games. She attributes her success to that of the team’s.
“We all trust one another, and we just want to see each other succeed,” Oliaro said. “So having people put me in great positions to score has really been a key. And just having that motivation to come out and get the next, and the next, and the next; we never stop.”
Oliaro also noted the team’s formation and how it enhances their strengths. The Blue Devils play in a 3-4-3, meaning they can get high and wide, as well as use their pace up top and on the wings.
The third Duke goal was also scored off of a cross from the width. Junior Devin Lynch headed a ball from Oliaro on the right side in the 25th minute. Lynch has scored four goals this season after not scoring any for the past two, heavily contributing to filling the gap that was left by Kat Rader’s injury at the beginning of the season.
“Now that Kat moved, Devin has stepped right in,” Church said. “She's played really, really well.”
Despite the Blue Devils’ momentum on the grass, Virginia (8-4, 1-4 in the ACC) put up a hard fight. The visiting team possessed well throughout the game and managed to score on Duke’s impressive back line in the 80th minute: Cavalier Meredith McDermott shouldered in a late corner kick, scoring just the third goal on the Blue Devils this season.
“[Virginia] kept the ball more than anybody has on us all year,” Church said. “This is a big-time win.”
To continue ACC play, Duke will face Louisville this Sunday. Although they are unranked, the Blue Devils’ loss to the Cardinals was the reason they did not compete in the NCAA tournament last year, so they are looking to create a different result. Next week, they will be going to the West Coast to take on Stanford Friday and California Saturday.
“We have to recover and get ourselves set to play on Sunday, and then next week, we'll take that journey for the first time, and figure out how that goes,” says Church. “I think it's one we really embrace, and we look forward to playing really good teams, because they're going to make us better.”
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