DURHAM – Duke goaltender
Mike Adler and attackman
Brennan O'Neill continue to garner weekly recognition for their play on the lacrosse field. The dynamic duo was named the ACC Men's Lacrosse Defensive and Offensive Players of the Week, while Adler also picked up the USA Lacrosse Magazine National Player of the Week award.
This is O'Neill's fourth ACC weekly honor and the third for Adler this season. The pair also garnered the honors together April 4.
Adler turned in a standout performance against No. 6 Virginia last Thursday, matching his career-high 20 saves while allowing only eight goals. The veteran backstop had 10 stops in the first half as Duke built a 7-3 halftime advantage. He added nine saves in the third quarter to help the Blue Devils pull away with an 11-5 advantage after 45 minutes of action.
Registering 20 saves for the second time this season and for the fourth time in his career, Adler pushed his career saves total to 782. He currently leads all active goalies in career saves and ranks 16th in NCAA history. Adler currently leads the ACC and ranks 13th nationally in save percentage at .556. His 12.93 saves per game are second in the league and 17th nationally.
O'Neill continues to be red-hot for the Blue Devils. The native of Bay Shore, N.Y., scored four goals and dished a career-high four assists to lead Duke to the 17-8 victory over Virginia. His eight points were one off his career high and marked the third time this season he has had at least seven points. In the past five games, O'Neill has 32 points from 23 goals and nine assists. He has recorded a hat trick in each of the past seven games.
With 49 goals to his name, O'Neill leads all players in total goals and ranks 11th nationally at 3.27 goals per game. His 4.33 points per game average is fifth in the league and fourth among all sophomores. He has 94 goals in his career to lead all current sophomores, leaving him six shy of becoming the 22nd Blue Devil to reach the benchmark.
Duke, ranked 11th in the latest USILA poll, has an extended break before returning to action May 1 against No. 15 North Carolina. Faceoff is at 5:30 p.m., on ACC Network.
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