Blue Devils and UNC Battle to 0-0 Draw in Wet Duke Nike Classic

 

Sept. 2, 2016

 

DURHAM, N.C. — In a top 10 battle of local rivals, the seventh-ranked Duke women’s soccer team dominated action with eighth-ranked North Carolina Friday evening in a wet Duke Nike Classic going 110 minutes, but finishing with a 0-0 draw.  The Blue Devils (3-1-1) held a 30-6 advantage in shots but could not get anything in the net against the Tar Heels (3-0-1).

 

After going 0-for-14 at Koskinen Stadium in school history against North Carolina, the Blue Devils registered their first draw versus the Tar Heels with the 0-0 ledger Friday.  In the series, Duke is now 3-37-2 all-time with North Carolina and features its first two-match undefeated stretch with UNC.  The Blue Devils won, 1-0, last season in Chapel Hill, N.C.

 

Duke got off to a hot start and never looked back as the Blue Devils hit the crossbar twice and hit the post on another attempt in the first half.  Sophomore Kayla McCoy featured a left-footed attempt from the left side of the box in the 33^rd minute that hit the far post.  Sophomore Chelsea Burns used her left foot in the 36^th minute to curl a shot that skipped off the crossbar, while freshman Olivia Erlbeck tried to loft a shot over the UNC keeper, but it hit the crossbar and went out of bounds in the 43^rd minute.

 

One of the best opportunities came in the 41^st minute as senior Toni Payne found junior Imani Dorsey and her shot went just wide left of the near post. 

 

At the end of the first half, the Blue Devils featured a 13-0 shot advantage.  Dorsey, who hails from Elkridge, Md., collected a team-high four first half attempts. 

 

North Carolina turned in its first shot of the match at the 49:59 mark and concluded the second period with a total of three shots.  Duke continued to fire at the Tar Heel keeper, Lindsey Harris, but continued to come up short. 

 

In the 86^th minute, North Carolina’s Zoe Redei launched a long shot that went off the crossbar and out of bounds, which was one of the most dangerous attempts for the Tar Heels all night. 

 

Through 90 minutes, Duke had a 21-3 shot advantage led by Dorsey’s five attempts. 

 

Duke featured six shots in the first overtime, but Harris made five saves to keep the match scoreless.  Two of the best chances were from Dorsey with a one-v-one chance with Harris but was saved and senior Lizzy Raben had a right-footed shot towards the left post but Harris made a diving stop to her right. 

 

Both teams attempted three shots in the final overtime and each keeper made one save as the match ended with a 0-0 draw through 110 minutes. 

 

Duke finished with a 30-6 advantage in shots.  Dorsey had a team-high seven, while Payne (5), McCoy (4) and sophomore Taylor Racioppi (4) each had over four looks. 

 

The shutout is the second straight for the Blue Devils since senior Rebecca Quinn returned from her stint with the Canada Women’s National Team at the Olympics.  Junior EJ Proctor finished the night with one save for Duke, while Harris added 11 saves for the Tar Heels.

 

In the first match of the classic, ninth-ranked Minnesota cruised to a 5-0 victory over Villanova. 

 

Sunday’s final day of action will have North Carolina versus Villanova at 12 p.m., followed by Minnesota at Duke at 2:30 p.m.  The Blue Devils will face Duke alumna Stefanie (Kraay) Golan in Sunday’s match as she is the head coach of the Gophers. 

 

 

#GoDuke

 

Notes:

• Duke has featured 69 shots over the last two matches and scored only two goals.  The Blue Devils have 24 shots on goal during that stretch.  After scoring 12 goals in the opening two matches, Duke has scored only three in the last three matches.