Duke Women's Lacrosse Hosts Vanderbilt Thursday at 3 PM

5/8/2002 1:00:00 AM | Women's Lacrosse

By: Duke Sports Information

May 8, 2002

NCAA CHAMPIONSHIPS * Women's Lacrosse
May 9, 2002 * Koskinen Stadium s Durham, N.C.
#9 Duke (9-7) vs. #10 Vanderbilt (10-5), 3:00 p.m.

ABOUT THE BLUE DEVILS
The Duke women's lacrosse team has overcome a rash of injuries to post a 9-7 record and earn a fifth consecutive NCAA Tournament berth. The Blue Devils have been without preseason Player of the Year Kate Kaiser, 2001 All-American Meghan Walters and key reserve Franciose Gordon. In addition, starting defender Amanda Hughes was lost for the season with a knee injury in the second game of the year, while Kristy Dirks and Courtney Fischer have missed significant game time this season.

The Blue Devils opened the year with five wins, including a 9-8 decision over then top-ranked Maryland. Injuries finally caught up to Duke as it lost four of its next five with all four losses coming to teams ranked in the top-five by the IWLCA.

Over the final six games of the regular season, Duke finished 3-3 with wins over ninth-ranked Notre Dame, James Madison and Pennsylvania. In the season finale, the Blue Devils dumped Penn, 13-7, as Lauren Gallagher and Kelly Dirks each registered three goals.

HEAD COACH KERSTIN KIMEL
Named the ACC Coach of the Year in 1998 and Co-ACC Coach of the Year in 2000, Kerstin Kimel is currently in her seventh year at the helm of the Blue Devil program and her eighth as a collegiate head coach. She owns a 69-49 record during her Duke career and a 83-57 mark overall.

After beginning the Duke program in 1996 and recording 11 wins in the first two seasons, Kimel has sparked the Blue Devils to 31 victories over the last three seasons and three trips to the NCAA Tournament. Her 1999 squad advanced to the NCAA Final Four for the first time in the school history.

Over the past three season's, the Blue Devils have not been ranked outside of the top-ten and reached the top spot in the poll for the first time in school history this season.

Prior to joining the Duke staff, Kimel served as the head coach at Davidson for one season. A native of Havertown, Pa., Kimel was a two-time All-America at Maryland and led the Terrapins to four consecutive Final Four appearances as well as the 1992 NCAA National Championship. A 1992 NCAA All-Tournament Team selection, she was named the 1993 National Defensive Player of the Year. She graduated from Maryland in 1993.

STRENGTH OF SCHEDULE
Duke has once again scheduled the highest competition for the 2002 campaign, already having faced 12 nationally ranked opponents, seven of which have been in the top 10. Duke is 5-7 against ranked opponents this season, with wins over #1 Maryland, #14 Johns Hopkins, #11 Vanderbilt, #14 William & Mary and #9 Notre Dame.

The win over top-ranked Maryland on March 1 was the second Blue Devil win over a #1 team in the school's history. Duke nearly toppled a top-ranked Georgetown team on March 24, but the Hoyas rallied from a late deficit to secure an 8-7 win.

THE DUKE - VANDERBILT SERIES
The Blue Devils and Commodores have met seven times, with Duke holding a 6-1 series lead. After falling to Vanderbilt, 13-11, in the inaugural season of women's lacrosse at Duke, the Blue Devils have handed the Commodores six straight losses.

In an earlier meeting this season, Duke earned an 11-7 victory at Koskinen Stadium. Kelly Dirks (four goals, one assist) and Jessica Bennett (three goals) sparked the offense in the win.

Last season, the Blue Devils set school records for goals and victory margin in a 22-2 win over the Commodores. Fourteen different Duke players registered a point in the 2001 win.

BLUE DEVIL DYNAMIC DUO
Lauren Gallagher and Kelly Dirks have provided a large portion of the Duke offensive punch this season. The pair have combined for 69 goals and 22 assists for 91 points in 2002.

Gallagher paces the team with 35 goals, 11 assists and 46 points. The West Chester, Pa., product has six consecutive games with at least two goals, accumulating 17 goals and five assists during that stretch.

The junior midfielder has also registered at least one goal in all 16 contests this season and in 38 consecutive games dating back to her freshman year. During her career, Gallagher has tallied a goal in 47 of 52 games played and delivered three or more goals 17 times.

In Duke's last outing, a 13-7 win over Penn, Gallagher registered her 100th career goal, becoming just the fourth Blue Devil women's lacrosse player to reach the century mark in goals scored.

Gallagher, a 2002 All-ACC selection, ranks among the top-ten in the ACC in scoring (9th - 2.87 pg.), goals scored (9th - 2.13 gpg.), caused turnovers (7th - 1.40 ctpg.) and draw controls (4th - 1.85 dcpg.).

Dirks, a senior attacker, has 34 goals, 11 assists and 45 points in 2002 and 123 goals, 32 assists and 155 points in her career. She has registered at least one point in 15 of the 16 games this season, including a pair of five-point efforts and a six-point game versus Davidson.

Dirks is also tied for the team lead with a shooting percentage of .507 (34-of-67). Over the last nine games, the Annapolis, Md., native has 24 goals and five assists.

After registering three goals on four shots in the ACC Tournament loss to North Carolina, Dirks was named to the ACC All-Tournament team for the first time in her career.

IRON DUKES
Eight Blue Devils, Lauren Gallagher, Kelly Dirks, Claire Sullivan, Stefanie Sparks, Meghan Miller, Meg Barnet, Caline McHenry and Kristen Foster, have started all 16 games for coach Kimel this season.

In addition, nine players, Gallagher, Dirks, Sullivan, Sparks, Lane Fogarty, Miller, McHenry, Cheryl Lynn Horton and Foster have logged over 800 minutes played. Miller, a sophomore defender, has played all but five minutes and 45 seconds this season, while Gallagher has logged 902 minutes on the field.

TENDING THE NETS
Senior Kristen Foster is having another solid year between the pipes for the Blue Devils. In 16 starts, she has accumulated 142 saves and has a save percentage of .505, ranking second in the Atlantic Coast Conference. Foster has played 903 of a possible 911:45 minutes this season and owns a goals against average of 8.56.

In an 11-3 win over Johns Hopkins on March 3, Foster set a new Duke game-record with a .609 save percentage (23 shots/14 saves). Foster ranks second all-time at Duke in saves (405), goalie minutes (2720.21) and save percentage (.542).

Foster, a Tewaaraton Trophy nominee each of the past two seasons, is the only Duke goalie to earn back-to-back All-ACC accolades.

MISCELLANEOUS NOTES
Meghan Miller ranks among the team leaders in goals (t-3rd - 15), assists (t-2nd - 9), points (3rd - 24), caused turnovers (1st - 25), draw controls (1st - 29) and ground balls (2nd - 48) ... senior Claire Sullivan (10 goals, 55 ground balls, 22 draw controls) has started all 70 games in her career. Her next start will set a new school record for starts in a career ... freshman Katie Laschinger has 10 goals and nine assists, while making 10 starts ... Duke has outscored the opposition 83-61 in the second half ... All-ACC selection Caline McHenry ranks third on the team with 42 ground balls and 20 caused turnovers.