Goalie Natalie Hunter extends to stop a fast break during the Terps’ 4-1 victory over Wake Forest on Sept. 20, 2013.

The last time Terrapins field hockey goalkeeper Natalie Hunter and Duke goalie Lauren Blazing competed, they were neither was playing for an ACC team.

In May, Hunter and Blazing were in the same tournament when the pair first watched one another showcase their talent to coaches during the High Performance National Championship in Norfolk, Va., a tournament organized by the U.S. field hockey team to scout players around the nation.

“She’s a young goalie, but a very good goalie,” Hunter said of Blazing. “Very skilled, very technically sound goalie.”

As two of the top goalkeepers in the nation, Hunter and Blazing will meet again when the No. 1 Terps travel to Durham, N.C., to play No. 7 Duke on Saturday afternoon in the final game of the regular season.

Some of Blazing’s performances have helped the Blue Devils (13-4, 3-2 ACC) hold leads and grind out pivotal wins. On Sept. 27, she made a career-high 22 saves in Duke’s 3-2 win against then-No. 1 North Carolina. The game went to a penalty shootout, where Blazing stopped the Tar Heels’ fourth attempt to seal the upset win.

Her tally against North Carolina more than doubles Hunter’s career high of 10 saves during the Terps’ (17-1, 5-0) 3-0 win against Old Dominion on Sept. 6. But similar to Blazing’s performance against the Tar Heels, the Seaville, N.J., native anchored the Terps defense against the Lady Monarchs. Hunter had seven saves in the second period, including three saves in under a minute to keep the team’s lead in tact.

“Natalie has had a terrific year,” coach Missy Meharg said. “She’s been reliable. She’s quiet. She’s a great leader.”

Blazing’s .812 save percentage ranks fifth nationally, while Hunter’s .792 percentage ranks seventh. However, Hunter doesn’t concede as many goals as Blazing, as her 1.10 goals allowed per game leaves her ranked sixth in the country, slightly edging Blazing’s 1.21 average, which is tenth.

Some of the Terps’ field players, including midfielders Anna Dessoye, Maxine Fluharty and Katie Gerzabek, also played with Blazing during the summer on the U.S. under-21 national team during the Junior World Cup.

“A few of us are familiar with her and know how she plays and maybe some of her strengths and weaknesses,” Dessoye said. “So we’re just going to try and play our best and see what we can do.”

After wins against Virginia and Georgetown — 4-1 and 9-0, respectively — the Terps will enter the next game with an offense that has recently been an effective component to the team. The team looks to continue that success by doing the same things it did last week in order to cause trouble for Blazing in goal.

“She has tremendous awareness of her angles,” Meharg said. “We’re going to want to get her off her angle and take shots as she’s moving into her angles. I think the key thing is quick execution of shots as well as framing the goal cage.”

How the Blue Devils will handle one of the nation’s best offenses on Saturday could have an impact on their seeding for next week’s ACC tournament. With a win against the Terps, Duke can jump to the No. 3 seed in the conference.

“I’m confident that she’ll show up as she has the whole season,” Meharg said. “That’s a nice position to be in as a coach.”