Duke Takes Down No. 11 West Virginia, 2-0, on the Road

 

August 29, 2014

 

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – Needing a victory on the road at 11^th-ranked West Virginia, the 21^st-ranked Duke women’s soccer team netted a 2-0 win Friday evening at Dick Dlesk Soccer Stadium in Morganton, W.Va.  The victory moved the Blue Devils to 1-2 on the season, while the Mountaineers dropped to 1-2.

 

After the Blue Devils peppered the West Virginia goal with five shots, Duke got on the board at the 21:57 mark as sophomore Christina Gibbons found rookie Imani Dorsey along the left side of the box. 

 

Dorsey, who is out of Elkridge, Md., made a good move and fired a left-footed blast into the right corner of the net to give the Blue Devils a 1-0 lead.

 

The goal was the first tally of the season for the Blue Devils, after being shutout in the first two matches against Ohio State and Stanford. 

 

West Virginia added four late shots in the half, but Duke’s defense held strong as the Blue Devils led, 1-0.  At the half, Blue Devils and Mountaineers were tied, 6-6, in shots. 

 

Duke sophomore Toni Payne collected the first shot of the second stanza that was saved just 38 seconds into the half.  West Virginia took control of the match over the next three minutes with three shots and three corner kicks. 

 

The Blue Devils countered with a long feed down the left side of the pitch from senior Kelly Cobb to Payne.  A native of Birmingham, Ala., beat the Mountaineer keeper into the right corner of the net for her fourth career goal. 

 

West Virginia responded with one of the best scoring chances of the match as Kailey Utley best a Blue Devil defender and fired a right-footed shot towards the right post but Duke goalkeeper Ali Kershner had a left-handed stop. 

 

At the 64:59 mark, Kershner made another great stop as she dove to her right and made a two-handed stop off a rocket by Ashley Lawrence. 

 

The Mountaineers added nine shots over the final 25 minutes but Kershner and the Blue Devils were able to hold on to the shutout, 2-0. 

 

West Virginia outshot Duke, 18-12, with Payne collecting a career-high seven shots.  Five other Blue Devils attempted shots on the night – Dorsey, Ashton Miller, Rebecca Quinn, Cobb and Christina Gibbons. 

 

Kershner, who is out of Palo Alto, Calif., registered her fourth career shutout in the net as she saved five Mountaineer shots. 

 

Duke will return home to host UAB Sunday, Aug. 31 at 6:00 p.m.  It will mark the home opener for the Blue Devils at Koskinen Stadium.

 

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