Blue Devils Set To Wrap Up ACC Slate With Boston College & Virginia Tech

4/11/2008 12:00:00 AM | Women's Lacrosse

By: Duke Sports Information

DURHAM, N.C. --- The Duke women's lacrosse team will take on the Boston College Eagles in an ACC match on Saturday at 12:00 p.m., in Koskinen Stadium, and then will head to Blacksburg, Va., on Monday for a 6:00 p.m. face-off with the Virginia Tech Hokies.

The B.C. game will be the last regular season home game for the Blue Devils and will feature a postgame ceremony honoring the team's seven seniors. It also marks Duke's fourth straight game at home and first contest against an unranked opponent since March 11, a swing that has spanned six games.

The Va. Tech matchup will be the final regular season ACC contest for Duke.

The Blue Devils: Duke is 7-5 this season and fifth with a 1-2 mark in the ACC. The Blue Devils hold a 4-5 record over ranked teams and a 2-4 mark over top-10 competition. They have lost four straight games for the first time since the program's second year of existence in 1997.

On attack, Duke is led by junior Carolyn Davis and junior Megan Del Monte. Davis leads the team this season with 33 goals and 11 assists, and has scored at least one goal in each game this year. She earned ACC Player of the Week accolades on Feb. 18 and March 4 and is a Tewaaraton Trophy watch list candidate. Del Monte has become a starter after coming off the bench in her first two seasons. She has 26 goals and 12 assists and has scored at least one point in each contest this year.

This team has one of the deepest midfields the Blue Devils have ever had, with senior Allie Johnson and junior Jess Adam leading the way and sophomores Danielle Kachulis and Lindsay Gilbride and freshmen Emma Hamm and Sarah Bullard in support. Johnson has scored 12 goals this season and has been helpful on the draw, picking up 27 draw controls. Adam has been stellar this year, recording 12 goals (including three game-winners), 10 assists and 19 draw controls. She was named the third team captain in March. Kachulis has tallied seven goals, 10 ground balls and seven caused turnovers while Gilbride has netted 21 goals and added six assists this season. Hamm leads the team in assists with 12, draws with 30 and caused turnovers with 19, is second on the squad with 24 ground balls and tied for third with 21 goals. Bullard has tallied 13 goals, 15 ground balls, 16 draw controls and seven caused turnovers.

The defense returns mostly intact this season and may be the most-experienced position for Duke. The leadership roles belong to senior Aiyana Newton and junior Christina Germinario. Newton has nine ground balls and 10 caused turnovers. Germinario has produced 11 caused turnovers and picked up 18 ground balls. Senior Sarah Kirchhofer and sophomore Sara Giedgowd have done solid jobs this season, with 13 ground balls and nine caused turnovers combined.

The Blue Devils have junior Kim Imbesi starting in the cage for the second consecutive season. Imbesi has posted an 11.14 goals against average and a .406 save percentage through 12 games while playing 694:30 minutes.

Kimel Climbing Up In Wins: Kerstin Kimel earned her 150th win as Duke's head coach on Feb. 22 against Richmond. Her record as a Blue Devil is 154-77 and her career mark is 158-85. Kimel has been at Duke since the women's lacrosse program's inception in 1996 and is tied as the longest-tenured coach in the ACC.

The Eagles: Boston College is 4-7 in 2008 and in third place at 2-2 in the ACC. The Eagles are 1-4 against ranked opponents this season, with their lone win coming over then-No. 7 North Carolina, 5-4 in double-overtime, on March 29. Last season, B.C. was 6-11 overall and 1-4 in taking fourth place in the conference. The 2008 team returns eight of 12 starters and 15 of 23 letterwinners from the 2007 squad.

The Hokies: Virginia Tech is 4-11 this season and in sixth place in the ACC at 0-3. The Hokies are 0-4 versus ranked opposition in 2008. They have yet to win an ACC game in four years in the conference.

Series Histories: Duke has never lost to Boston College or Virginia Tech, and holds a 4-0 mark over the Eagles and a 9-0 record against the Hokies. Last year, in Chestnut Hill, Mass., the Blue Devils rolled to a 16-8 victory over B.C. on the strength of four goals from Carolyn Davis and two goals and one assist from Allie Johnson. Duke earned a 16-7 win over Virginia Tech last season in Durham and received two goals from current sophomore midfielder Christie Barnes.

Rankings: The Blue Devils are currently No. 8 in the weekly IWLCA poll and No. 10 in Inside Lacrosse's media rankings. Boston College and Virginia Tech are unranked in both polls.

Last Time Out: Duke lost its fourth consecutive game, 15-11, to No. 1 Northwestern at home on April 6. The Blue Devils led 8-6 at halftime but were unable to hold onto that edge. Emma Hamm led Duke with three goals on the afternoon.

The Eagles defeated Connecticut, 18-8, on Wednesday at home. They were led by Lauren Costello and Lauren Fitzpatrick, who each tallied four goals in the game. Junior goalkeeper Katie Monaghan recorded 12 saves to help defensively.

Virginia Tech picked up its first road win of the season on Wednesday at Longwood, 22-12. The Hokies were paced by Rachel Culp's six goals and hat tricks from Allie Emala, Kate Tracey and Kady McBrearty. Junior goalkeeper Kari Morrison made 14 saves in the net.

On the Horizon: After the Virginia Tech game on Monday, Duke will travel to Nashville, Tenn., to take on No. 14 Vanderbilt on Sunday, April 20 at 2:00 p.m. ET.

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