Out to a first quarter, three-goal lead, it looked as if the Terrapin men’s lacrosse team would put away another highly ranked opponent.
The difference was Duke didn’t roll over like Georgetown did a week ago.
The No. 12 Blue Devils went on a three-goal run to begin the second quarter and a five-goal streak midway through the second half to take a commanding lead.
Despite a Terp comeback in the final quarter, Blue Devil goalie Aaron Fenton continued to make clutch saves as he had all game, handing the No. 3 Terps a 10-8 loss Saturday at the Field Hockey and Lacrosse Complex.
“I guess [their comeback] did shock us,” sophomore goalie Harry Alford said. “Georgetown last week, it wasn’t like this at all. We controlled the whole game. This week, we hit them down but they got right back up and stuffed it down our throat.”
Duke (4-0, 1-0 ACC) owned the majority of the game’s offensive possessions and capitalized on 10 of 26 shots, compared to only 8 of 50 for the usually sharp-shooting Terps (1-1, 0-1). A week ago, Terp coach Dave Cottle said shooting percentage was the most important statistic in lacrosse. That proved true again this week.
“I don’t think we passed the ball well enough. I think we held it too much rather than moving it to the open guy,” junior attackman Joe Walters said. “We definitely took a step back this week. It’s a shame. This hurts.”
Fenton finished with 16 saves. Alford had eight saves after a 25-save performance against Georgetown.
After falling behind 9-6, the Terps halted Duke’s five-goal spurt with a score from junior midfielder Brendan Healy and another by Walters 40 seconds later. The Terps won the next faceoff and brought the ball down for a long offensive possession.
A quick pass found sophomore attackman Michael Phipps alone in front with the goalie. But Fenton extended his foot and blocked the shot to the lower left, giving Duke enough control for the rest of the game.
“That was just frustrating. I had a one on one on the goalie right there, and if I scored it’s a tie game,” Phipps said. “But I give the goalie credit, he made a great save.”
The Terps won the game’s first four faceoffs, pacing them to a 3-0 lead at the end of the first quarter. The third score, a Walters rocket from far outside the crease, came only 24 seconds after the Terps’ second goal.
But a goal from Duke junior midfielder Matt Zash 10 seconds into the second quarter put a dent in the Terps’ momentum. Another winning faceoff and another score, this time by sophomore attackman Matt Danowski, gave the Blue Devils hope. The tying goal, less than a minute later by junior attackman Dan Flannery put them back in the game.
“You got to make your shots when it matters, and they did,” Cottle said. “We had enough possessions to win. I didn’t think we were sharp on offense all week in practice and that came back to haunt us. … It’s a good win for Duke but we’re going to be a lot better. I promise you that.”
