Duke Matures into Final Four Contender
Foxboro-Bound Duke Holds Off UNC Charge
by Paul Ohanian | Lacrosse Magazine Online Staff
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Duke attackman Max Quinzani fends off a North Carolina defender Sunday during the Blue Devils' 12-11 win in the second NCAA Division I quarterfinal at Navy. Duke advances to the national semifinals for the third straight year. © Kevin P. Tucker |
ANNAPOLIS, Md. -- This isn't the same Duke
men's lacrosse team that John Danowski last brought to Maryland on
Feb. 28.
That afternoon, the Blue Devils never seemed to find a rhythm
while losing 11-8 to Maryland in the Face-Off Classic at M&T
Bank Stadium. The loss of 11 lettermen, including five
All-Americans, from last year's national semifinal team, was
evident.
Nearly three months later, the new pieces have fit together so
nicely that the Blue Devils actually enjoyed their return trip to
Maryland.
It wasn't easy, but No. 3-ranked Duke extended the nation's
longest current winning streak to nine straight with a 12-11
victory over archrival North Carolina in the NCAA quarterfinals
Sunday at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium. With the win, Duke
earns a fourth straight trip back to the national semifinals in
Foxboro, where it will face defending national champion Syracuse on
Saturday.
To get there, however, the Blue Devils had to withstand a frantic
fourth quarter comeback by the Tar Heels, who rallied from a
four-goal deficit to pull to within one at 12-11 with 6:10
remaining. That's as close as UNC would come, as Duke prevailed for
the 11th straight time in the series between the two ACC
rivals.
"It wasn't always smooth, and it wasn't easy, that's for certain,
but we figured out how to hang in there and how to win," said
Danowski.
The fact that Duke was even in this position probably comes as
quite a surprise to anybody that saw the Devils earlier this
season.
Converted midfielder Ned Crotty, who passed out assists like
Halloween candy on Sunday, was still adjusting to playing on the
attack the last time Duke ventured north. Junior Max Quinzani was
trying to figure out who the new guys were on offense. Senior
goalie Rob Schroeder (11 saves) was still adjusting to being the
starter for the first time in his career.
"The older guys were not experienced and the younger guys were not
experienced," explained Danowski. "We had new people in new
positions and no chemistry. We had to fail a little bit early in
order to succeed."
Adhering to the one-step-backwards, two-steps-forward philosophy
has certainly paid dividends.
There were a number of unsung heroes for the new-look Blue Devils
once again on Sunday. Sophomore defender Mike Manley limited UNC's
Billy Bitter, who tallied eight goals against UMBC last week, to
just two assists. Fellow defenseman Parker McKee collected a
game-high 12 groundballs. Sophomore Zach Howell has emerged as a
third attackman and tied a career-high with three goals.
"Everybody contributes and everybody is capable of making plays,"
said Danowski. "We knew we had good athletes, but we didn't have a
lot of experience."
That inexperience, so clearly evident in back-to-back losses to
Harvard and Maryland at the end of February, is all but gone now
that we're into the middle of May.
"Looking back at that game against Maryland, the offense wasn't
really flowing," said Quinzani. "Now, we're just confident. We're
sticking shots. We have that confidence and believe we can beat
goaltenders."
Danowski has enjoyed seeing the growth of his team.
"One of the fun things about coaching is you take a group of kids
and you come to work everyday and you don't know what's going to
happen," he said. "That's part of the excitement. You have to earn
everything you get. There are no guarantees that it's going to work
out. That's what makes it rewarding."
"Nobody thought we were going to be in this position," admitted
Crotty, who tied his career high with six assists and eight points.
"Everybody has grown...and now we're in the final four. It's very
fulfilling."
