Lacrosse Falls at No. 2 Duke

Lacrosse Falls at No. 2 Duke

3/26/2006

DURHAM, N.C. — The Commodores led early in the game against the No. 2 Duke Blue Devils, but could not hold on as they would eventually fall, 15-11, Sunday at Koskinen Stadium.

Vanderbilt struck first when Margie Curran tickled the twine in the third minute of play, but Duke would come right back, tying the score less than two minutes later. The game would only remain tied for less than two minutes as Kendall Thrift knocked in one of her team-high three goals on the day, making it 2-1 with 23:42 remaining in the half.

Two minutes and 30 seconds later, though, the Commodores would find themselves behind 3-2 after a pair of Duke goals from Allie Johnson and Rachel Sanford. But before the Blue Devils knew it, Vanderbilt would tie the game on yet another goal from Curran, knotting it up at 3-3 with 19:21 remaining in the first stanza.

The next five minutes of the game would belong to Cara Giordano, as she would go on to score twice giving the Commodores a 5-3 lead over the No. 2 team in the nation, with 14:27 to go in the period.

But the Commodore lead would not last, as Duke scored five unanswered goals in the next seven minutes and 18 seconds, giving the Devils an 8-5 advantage. Vanderbilt fought back yet again with two straight goals from Jennifer Tapscott and Ashley Paschall, cutting the Duke advantage to one. The Devils would eventually take a 9-7 lead into the half.

Duke took control to start the second half of play, scoring six of the next 7 goals to make it a 15-8 deficit for the Commodores with 13:47 to play. The Commodores did not go down quietly though, scoring the next three goals of the contest, but it would not be enough against the second-ranked Blue Devils.

“Against one of the best teams in the nation, we really came out and showed what we’re capable of when we put up a fight,” Head Coach Cathy Swezey said. “We kept it close and made it an exciting game. We’re looking forward to our next couple of contests.”

Cara Giordano and Margie Curran (2 G, 3 A) each finished with a pair of goals. Curran also finished with a game-high five draw controls.

Other scorers for the Commodores included Ashley Paschall, Jennifer Tapscott, Nicole Pugno and Kate Hickman. Hickman, Vanderbilt’s leading scoring coming into the game, was limited due to an injury sustained during pre-game warm-ups.

Molly Frew and Leslie Koch picked up three groundballs apiece to lead the Commodores. On the defensive side of the ball, Goalkeeper Brooke Shinaberry had seven saves on the day.

The Commodores will head to Baltimore for their next match against the No. 3 Johns Hopkins Blue Jays for an American Lacrosse Conference contest on Sunday, April 2 at 1 p.m. ET.