Depth delivers Duke this time
FOXBORO — Throughout his career, Justin Guterding has been a major provider in Duke’s dynamic offense.
In yesterday’s NCAA men’s lacrosse national semifinal against top-seeded Maryland, Guterding, who holds the Division 1 record for career goals, continued to be an offensive force with three goals and three assists, but the fourth-ranked Blue Devils showed their real key is depth.
The Blue Devils received goals from seven different players against their old ACC foes and prevented the Terrapins from making their fourth straight finals appearance with a 13-8 victory at Gillette Stadium.
Duke (16-3) looks for its fourth national championship since 2010, when it faces Yale tomorrow at 1.
“Offensively, we like to play with the mindset that we can’t really be stopped and guys are starting to play like that with the utmost confidence and it’s really nice to see,” Guterding said.
Duke scored the first six goals of the contest, highlighted by two tallies from freshman Nakeie Montgomery, who has emerged as a go-to scorer in the postseason. After scoring just six goals in the regular season, Montgomery has eight goals in the tournament, including three against Maryland (14-4).
Foxboro native Sean Lowrie assisted Duke’s hot start by netting the second goal in the run.
“Sean Lowrie scored early, which was huge,” said Duke coach John Danowski. “A kid from Foxboro is either going to play really poorly or he’s going to play great. We said to him beforehand, ‘Just don’t hide. Just don’t try not to make a mistake. Go out and play.’ When he scored that gave the team a huge lift because of who he is and what he means to the team.”
The 6-0 lead was in good hands with Duke’s defense holding Maryland scoreless for the first 18 minutes before Jared Bernhardt and Anthony DeMaio scored less than a minute apart.
Montgomery got Duke back on track, as Maryland left him unattended and he uncorked a shot into the net.
The Terrapins chipped away at an 8-3 deficit and netted the first two goals of the second half when Connor Kelly and Bubba Fairman each scored to get within one, 8-7, with 8:05 remaining in the third quarter.
But Duke’s offense had the final response. The Blue Devils scored four straight goals with Guterding netting one and assisting on two others tallies to create separation with a 12-7 lead midway through the fourth quarter.
“There was a point where the game got a little tight and I felt like I needed to take over,” Guterding said. “That wasn’t the way we were playing the first half. (Assistant coach) Matt Danowski came up to me and said, ‘Remember it’s Duke vs. Maryland, not you vs. Maryland.’”
Duke’s defense was impenetrable over the final 23 minutes, allowing one goal during that span with Danny Fowler (12 saves) coming up with timely stops.