Strong Second Half Sends Blue Devils Past Navy, 10-3

Sunday, February 15

Durham, N.C.

1:00 PM

Duke University

Navy

Strong Second Half Sends Blue Devils Past Navy, 10-3

2/15/2015 4:16:00 PM | Women's Lacrosse

By: Duke Sports Information

DURHAM, N.C. – Freshman attacker Kyra Harney collected the first hat trick of her collegiate career and junior goalkeeper Kelsey Duryea recorded a season-high nine saves in the net to guide eighth-ranked Duke to a 10-3 defeat of Navy Sunday at Koskinen Stadium.

The Blue Devils moved to 3-0 following their first two weekends of action, while the Mids fell to 2-1 on the year.

Harney led all players with four points in the contest, assisting teammate Maddy Acton on a first-half score, and senior Brigid Smith logged three points on two goals and one assist. Loren Generi paced Navy with one goal, two assists and five draw controls as the visiting squad held a 10-6 advantage in the category.

Generi started off the scoring 10 minutes into the game, but four early saves by Duryea kept the margin at just one until senior Katie Trees converted from the eight-meter three minutes later. The Blue Devils went on to take the lead when Harney intercepted a pass on a Navy clear attempt and Acton capitalized on the offensive end.

Turnovers plagued both teams over the remainder of the period and into the second half. Despite the teams combining for 23 shots in the opening 30 minutes, the score remained 2-1 at the intermission.

The Mids won the opening draw of the second half but following three turnovers by the squads, it was Duke that would break through as Smith found classmate Taylor Trimble to push it to 3-1. Senior Kerrin Maurer forced a turnover on Navy's next clearing attempt, setting up Harney to assist Acton on her second goal of the day.

Facing a three-goal deficit, the Mids responded quickly on a win by Generi at the draw that led to a Casey Browne score. However, solid defensive play and efficient shooting from the eight-meter mark prompted five unanswered goals by the Blue Devils. Smith and Harney both registered two during the scoring burst and Maurer added another to extend the lead to 9-2 with 9:33 to play.

“Those caused turnovers, those ground balls are huge momentum changers for us,” Duryea said. “We really work hard in practice to do that and have it translate to a game. The whole time, we were just trying to keep the momentum for our offense.”

Navy goalkeeper Annie Foky came up with a diving save on the following possession and Lindsay Rheiner finished at the other end on a dish from Generi. Harney punctuated her outing in the final minute of regulation to seal the Duke victory.

The Blue Devils totaled 21 shots on the day to 20 by the Mids and picked up 21 ground balls to win the category. Both teams committed 17 turnovers apiece, though Duke's defensive unit held Navy to 0-for-4 on free position shots.

Trimble won a team-high two draw controls and sophomore Maura Schwitter, junior Claire Scarrone, Duryea and Harney all notched three ground balls each.

Up next, the Blue Devils face a quick turnaround, playing Northwestern at the Accelerated Center in Northbrook, Ill. Thursday, Feb. 19.

#GoDuke