SOUTH BEND, Ind., — Notre Dame still has Duke’s number.
On a drenched afternoon in Alcott Stadium, another anemic offensive performance doomed the 11th-ranked Blue Devils to a humbling defeat at the hands of the Fighting Irish 14-7 in their first ACC contest of the year.
Duke’s goalless second quarter allowed No. 7 Notre Dame to pull ahead on a 6-0 run, a lead which it never relinquished. Five goals from the Fighting Irish’s Jake Taylor alongside 10 saves from goalie Thomas Ricciardelli sealed a seventh win in a row for the Fighting Irish against the Blue Devils.
“Disappointed” was the lone word Duke head coach John Danowski used to describe his team’s performance.
Hoping to spark life in his offense after a dismal six-goal showing in a loss to Denver last weekend, Danowski opted to start attackman Max Sloat in midfield and attacking midfielder Jack Pappendick in attack. It wasn’t all bad from the start, as the Blue Devils struck on the first possession of the game.
Luke Grayum streaked from below the crease, received a perfect pass from offensive quarterback Eric Malever and blew it past Riccardelli to make it 1-0. After Jordan Faison and Matt Jeffery — both also play wide receiver for Notre Dame’s football team — answered to make it 2-1, Sloat found nylon with a rope of a shot from the outside. The goal, coupled with excellent defense in passing lanes, allowed Duke to enter the second quarter tied with the two-time defending national champions.
Then, the drought began.
The Blue Devils were unable to dodge past the defensive midfielders from the top, despite the fact that the Fighting Irish were down their best in injured Shawn Lyght. While Duke found success working from the wings and the X in the first quarter, Notre Dame was able to keep the Blue Devils in front at all times. Without any separation and needing the perfect pipe shot to best Ricciardelli, Sloat and Benn Johnston missed attempts high and wide at the end of multiple fruitless possessions.
Even when things did go well for Duke, it ended with nothing to show for it on the scoreboard. With 52 seconds left in the first half, trailing by six, the Blue Devils were looking for any spark of momentum to carry into the break and provide some hope for a second half revival. Chris Cusolito skillfully dodged from the right wing and swung a skip pass to a wide-open Graham Blake.
The graduate student then hesitated, and instead of shooting, opted to run downhill and get closer to the crease. Notre Dame’s Greg Campisi slid over and dispensed a nasty stick check, scooping the ground ball and solidifying a scoreless second quarter for Duke.
When asked about the effectiveness of the Sloat-Pappendick switch, Danowski said “neither guy had a point.”
As the offense struggled, the defense tired, and waves of transition chances wore down the Blue Devils. The Fighting Irish went to work on the right wing, continually finding open looks that kept Duke goalie Patrick Jameison guessing. In the midst of the 6-0 run in the second quarter, Notre Dame scored four straight goals from the same spot on the right wing.
Taylor and Jalen Seymour beat Jameison low, while Devon McLane and Fisher Finley beat him high. The epitome of the frustrating period occurred when Jameison made an excellent save on Will Angrick from that same location, only to have it tickle off his body and roll into the net to make it 8-2.
The lone offensive bright spot for Duke came after the halftime break, as Andrew McAdorey created moments of individual brilliance. Taking a screen from the left wing, the senior glided down behind the crease, shifting back and forth to create separation from Tyler Buchner.
As Buchner slightly overcommitted to his left, McAdorey sprinted to his right, rounding the corner and firing a bullet into the top-right corner to make it 8-3. Later in the third quarter, McAdorey again dodged from the left wing, this time quickly firing it past Ricciardelli into the top right corner. The St. Anthony’s product went bananas, waving his stick, flexing and directing his passionate energy towards the Blue Devils’ bench, attempting to create momentum only down 10-5.
However, within two minutes, Notre Dame snatched back all momentum. Brady Pokorny grabbed a rebound after a blocked shot attempt and quickly passed to Taylor standing on the right edge of the crease. The graduate student effortlessly flipped a mind-boggling behind-the-back pass to a streaking Jeffery Ricciarderlli, older brother of the goalie, who dunked it past a hapless Jameison to make it 11-5 in the fourth quarter. The moment sent a bolt of electricity through Alcott Stadium, landed at No. 8 on the SportsCenter Top 10 plays and, most importantly, dashed all hope of a Duke comeback.
The Blue Devils have some soul searching to do between now and a clash with No. 17 Boston University next Saturday. As talented and cohesive as Duke is defensively, feeble offensive performances like the last two weeks will hurt the team, no matter the skill of the opponent.
When asked how his team can become more disciplined, Danowski said, “[I] don’t know yet.”
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