Field hockey: No. 18 UVA falls 1-0 at #4 Duke

The No. 18 UVA field hockey team (4-7, 1-4 ACC) fell 1-0 at No. 4 Duke (10-3, 3-1 ACC) on Friday (Oct. 5) in Durham, N.C.

The game was tied 0-0 at halftime. Duke’s Rose Tynan scored the lone goal of the contest 57 seconds into the second period. Senior goalkeeper Carrera Lucas (Brooklandville, Md.) matched her season high with nine saves in the game.

“This was a total team effort against a very good opponent,” said Virginia head coach Michele Madison. “I couldn’t be prouder of the game we brought. The whole team was committed to the game plan and that’s what they put on the field, which is why this was such a good game. We were hungry in the circle, relentless. We just have to keep at it until we bust through. It was a great job tonight by Carrera, all four backs and our defense. We just keep getting better and are going to keep getting better so that the last game we play is our best.”

The Blue Devils took the first seven shots of the game, with Lucas making five saves in the first period, before senior Greta Ell (Plains, Pa.) had a good look at the goal in the waning seconds of the first half, but her strong shot was stopped by Duke’s Sammi Steele.

Duke scored in the opening minute of the second half, with Tynan tipping in a feed from the left side. Ell had another opportunity five minutes later to tie things up, but her shot sailed over the goal. The Cavaliers fired off another seven shots in the period, with Steele stopping five on-target attempts, but could not get the ball over the goal line.

With 5:27 remaining in the game, the Cavaliers pulled the goalie, giving them an extra attacker. With 3:12 remaining, Duke’s Margaux Paolino was issued a green card, giving UVA two bonus attackers. The advantage only lasted a minute as freshman Peyton Tollaksen (Chesapeake, Va.) was assessed a green card. Duke’s Carolina Andretta was whistled for a foul and issued a green with 1:43 remaining to again give the Cavaliers a man-up advantage, but the Blue Devil defense held on for the shutout victory.

Duke ended the game with 14 shots while Virginia took nine.

This was the Cavaliers’ third-straight match this season against a top-10 team and sixth overall. The Cavaliers are ranked No. 18 in this week’s Penn Monto/NFHCA poll while Duke remained the No. 4 team.

Virginia returns home to host Miami (Ohio) on Sunday, Oct. 7 at 1 p.m. Sunday’s contest will be the Cavaliers’ Think Pink game. Admission is free for all of Virginia’s regular-season home field hockey games.