Georgetown University’s Newspaper of Record since 1920

The Hoya

Georgetown University’s Newspaper of Record since 1920

The Hoya

Georgetown University’s Newspaper of Record since 1920

The Hoya

Fourth Quarter Run Too Much for Hoyas at Duke

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Redshirt sophomore Ricky Mirabito

A month removed from a No. 5 ranking and a win over third-ranked Maryland, Georgetown (3-4, 0-2 ECAC) finds itself out of the national rankings and in serious jeopardy of missing the NCAA tournament for the second year in a row. The latest setback for the Hoyas was a 9-5 loss to No. 10 Duke (7-3, 1-1 ACC) on Saturday in Durham.

“This team’s in unchartered waters for us,” Head Coach Dave Urick said. “We need to react in an appropriate fashion and just keep working hard.”

As has been a trend this season, the first quarter was not kind to the Hoyas. Senior midfielder Todd Cochran got the scoring started two-and-a-half minutes in with an unassisted goal to give Georgetown a 1-0 advantage. From there it was all Duke for the next 26 minutes of the first half.

Blue Devils freshman defender C.J. Constable took the ball on the ensuing faceoff, beating redshirt sophomore goalkeeper Jack Davis to even the score at 1-1. With a 2-1 lead, Duke junior attack Max Quinzani unleashed a barrage of goals on the Hoyas. The All-American scored his first off of a feed from senior midfielder Ned Crotty. With the first quarter winding down, Georgetown was called for a one minute unsportsmanlike penalty. Quinzani made the Hoyas pay for their mistake, scoring twice in the next minute to go up 4-1.

“We had some self-inflicted wounds in the game which come back to cost you in a game like that . we played hard, but we need to eliminate those self-inflicted wounds,” Urick said.

With under a minute to go in the first half, Duke had the momentum and a four-goal lead, but an unnecessary roughness penalty on senior defender Ryan McFadyen gave Georgetown an extra-man opportunity. Junior midfielder Andrew Brancaccio didn’t let the opportunity go to waste, intercepting a Duke clear and ripping a shot from 20 feet out to give the Hoyas life. Georgetown won the ensuing faceoff and sophomore attack Ryan Shuler found the back of the cage with 10 seconds left in the half to narrow the gap to 5-3.

After a good defensive stand by the Hoyas, Shuler opened up the scoring in the second half, taking a pass from junior attack Craig Dowd to pull within one. Later in the quarter, Dowd played quarterback again, finding a cutting junior midfielder in Scott Kocis who tied the game at 5-5.

The Hoyas’ comeback and wave of momentum would be short-lived.

Seconds after tying the score, junior midfielder Chris Schuville was called for slashing, giving Duke a one-minute EMO.

“It was right on the next faceoff [after Kocis’ goal] that we got the penalty, and it’s something we probably shouldn’t have done, and then Duke went on a run,” Urick said.

Duke senior midfielder Mike Catalino scored from long-range on the EMO to retake the lead, one the Blue Devils would never relinquish. Duke won the faceoff, and two passes later sophomore attack Zach Howell scored to increase the lead to 7-5.

“We had some momentum going into half with the two goals,” Kocis said. “Then we came out and tied it up, but we couldn’t stop their run. We had some opportunities to score but hit some pipes and unfortunately couldn’t get our offense going.”

The Blue Devils added two more goals in the fourth to ice the game and leave with a 9-5 victory.

The Hoyas, who are in last place in the ECAC and out of the national rankings, know they are in a precarious situation with home dates against Harvard and Navy looming.

“There’s a sense of urgency [on the team],” Kocis said. “We pretty much need to win out. We’re going to stay upbeat though.”

The Hoyas host No. 13 Harvard (4-1, 1-0 Ivy) on Wednesday at the Multi-Sport Facility at 3:30 p.m. Harvard beat Duke to open its season.

“We’re finally off the road, but it doesn’t get any easier. Harvard’s a very good team,” Urick said. “They’re very well-coached and we know they’ll be ready to play.”

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