Field Hockey Drops 1-0 Decision to No. 1 UNC

Friday, October 17

Durham, N.C.

6:00 PM

Duke University

North Carolina

Field Hockey Drops 1-0 Decision to No. 1 UNC

10/17/2014 8:59:00 PM | Field Hockey

By: Duke Sports Information

DURHAM, N.C. – The eighth-ranked Duke field hockey team was held scoreless for the first time on the season, falling to top-ranked North Carolina by a 1-0 score Friday night at Williams Field at Jack Katz Stadium. With the loss, the Blue Devils slipped to 10-4 overall and 2-3 in conference play.

“For about 50 minutes of this game, we were on fire and we were really playing the kind of game we've been working to play,” said head coach Pam Bustin. “The way we played as a team and the way we fought in the second half is definitely a positive ... I think it's just the finish part, the confidence and knowing that we're putting ourselves in great positions to win games. We want to have the confidence and the poise to finish it.”

Senior forward Jessica Buttinger led the attack in the opening minutes, firing a pair of shots along the near baseline. Duke also drew the first penalty corner of the contest seven minutes in, but sophomore Heather Morris' hit on the play was turned away by Tar Heel goalkeeper Shannon Johnson. Blue Devil goalkeeper Lauren Blazing made a stop at the other end a few minutes later to preserve the 0-0 score.

The teams traded penalty corners over the next few possessions before North Carolina capitalized on a set piece. Samantha Travers tallied the goal off of a slip from teammate Julia Young to make it 1-0 in the Tar Heels' favor at the 25:38 mark. The visiting team would carry that lead into halftime, while also holding a 6-5 edge in shots and a 4-2 advantage in penalty corners at the intermission.

Duke responded to the deficit by playing with great energy in the second half. The squad earned four penalty corner opportunities early in the period and put looks on cage, but was still unable to get past Shannon Johnson in North Carolina's goal. The Tar Heels applied pressure on their offensive end, forcing Blazing to come out of the cage to make a critical kick save around the 12 minute mark. Freshman Ashley Kristen led the Blue Devils on the counter attack, but once again had her shot stopped by North Carolina's Shannon Johnson.

The Blue Devils pulled Blazing from the goal with 6:21 to play, but struggled to get the ball out of their defensive end before making a final push up the field. However, the Tar Heels held on to earn the one-goal victory and improve to 3-2 in ACC action.

“At halftime, the kids really did a good job of coming together and going back to the game plan and the things that we knew we had to do in order to win the game tonight,” Bustin said. “I thought we did everything we could to win the game second half except just finish it. I couldn't be more proud of how they competed in the second half against a great team. But you've got to finish it.”

Duke outshot North Carolina 12-8 for the contest after limiting the Tar Heels to zero shots in the final six minutes. Penalty corners were also in the Blue Devils' favor by a 6-5 margin.

Shannon Johnson finished with seven saves in a solid goalkeeping performance for the Tar Heels while Blazing posted four stops for Duke.

The Blue Devils wrap up the regular season portion of their home schedule Sunday, Oct. 19 in a 1 p.m. matchup with non-conference opponent James Madison. The program's three seniors – Abby Beltrani, Buttinger and Martine Chichizola – will be honored following the conclusion of the contest. Duke will also sport pink in support of the Stick it to Cancer initiative Sunday.

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