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Duke Women's Lacrosse News |
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May 23, 2008 |
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Duke Falls In Overtime To Penn In National Semifinals, 9-8 |
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TOWSON, Md. -- The Duke Blue Devils lost a heartbreaker to the No. 2 Penn Quakers in
the national semifinals, 9-8, in overtime at Johnny Unitas Stadium. It was the
fourth straight appearance in the Final Four for Duke, and all four showings have
resulted in losses by two goals or less.
Junior attacker Carolyn Davis and sophomore midfielder Lindsay Gilbride did most of
the scoring damage. Davis had a game-high five goals on just six shots and Gilbride
chipped in two more scores. Junior goalkeeper Kim Imbesi had another strong NCAA
Tournament game, finishing with seven saves.
"I think that we executed our offensive game plan really well and it opened up a lot
of room for me to challenge," said Davis.
It was a defensive struggle from the outset, with both teams attempting to control
the ball and slow down the pace of the game. Less than two minutes into the match,
ACC Freshman of the Year Emma Hamm went down with an ankle injury and was unable to
return.
Although Penn would strike first, the Blue Devils would ultimately take over the
first half. Dominating possession, Duke staked itself out to slim leads of 2-1 and
4-2, and led 4-3 going into the locker room. Davis posted her first two goals in the
first period, including the Blue Devils first score.
Penn struck first in the second period before Davis went on a three-goal run in less
than seven minutes to give the Blue Devils a 7-4 advantage with 18:05 remaining. All
of the momentum appeared to be with Duke at that point. However, the Quakers then
shutout Duke for 17:05 and went on a four-goal run of its own that put them up 8-7
with 5:40 left.
Duke lost the next draw control and turned the ball over on its next possession, but
was able to re-gain possession with 1:25 left in the match. Head coach Kerstin Kimel
called Duke's second timeout and on the re-start Gilbride was fouled and awarded a
free-position shot. The native of Alexandria, Va., ripped the shot low and into the
back of the net with one minute remaining. The Duke defense then limited Penn to one
weak shot in the final minute to force overtime.
"I was setting myself up and I wanted the ball," said Gilbride on her game-tying
shot. "I got right to the eight-meter and I knew that I could do it. I looked around
and just wanted to put it away. Afterward I was so excited because it was exactly
what we needed and I thought we were going to keep going from there."
In the first half of non-sudden death overtime, Davis won her third draw control of
the game. The Blue Devil offense waited for a shot, which came from Gilbride with 24
seconds left but was saved by Penn goalkeeper Sarah Waxman.
Penn won the draw control at the beginning at the second half of the overtime, and
did what Duke had done in the first part of the extra session in waiting for a
quality look. With 45 seconds left, midfielder Giulia Giordano was given a
free-position shot, which she turned into a quick pass on the whistle to attacker
Rachel Manson, who beat Imbesi high to take the lead.
Once again, Penn won the draw and was able to run out the clock on Duke's season.
The Blue Devils turned the ball over a season-low six times and committed just 16
fouls, which was one higher than their lowest total in a game this year. They also
were 4-for-5 on free-position shots, which was their highest percentage of the
season.
The Quakers were led by midfielders Melissa Lehman with three goals and Giordano
with one goal and two assists. Manson tallied two goals, including the game winner.
Penn now has a 15-game winning streak that began on March 11.
Duke is now 2-1 all-time against Penn, with the teams having previously played a
home-and-home series in 2002 and 2003. The Blue Devils won 13-7 at home in 2002 and
15-5 on the road in 2003. The Blue Devils fall to 12-11 in the NCAA tournament and
0-6 in neutral sites. This was Duke's 11th consecutive NCAA tournament appearance,
which is tied for the third-longest run in Division I.
Duke ends the 2008 campaign at 13-8 and finishes with a 6-8 record over ranked teams
and a 4-6 mark over top-10 competition. The Blue Devils were 2-1 this year at
neutral sites. Penn improves to 17-1 this season. The Quakers will take on No. 1
Northwestern on Sunday night at 7:00 p.m., in the national championship game at
Johnny Unitas Stadium.
The Blue Devils will return nine of 12 starters from this year's squad in 2009 and
will have 2007 Tewaaraton Trophy finalist Caroline Cryer back after missing the
season due to a foot injury.
"To say that I'm proud of my kids this year would be an understatement," said Kimel.
"The most important things they can take from the season are intangibles - they
learned to fight, to overcome."
Source: Duke Sports Information Department
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