Boston College lacrosse went down to Durham, N.C. in search of its second conference win. With a majority of opponents ranked in the top 15, BC needed this win to prove that they can compete with the best of the best. With an opponent close in ranking, the Eagles knew this was a great opportunity to get that win. But Duke never makes things easy. No. 17 BC (7-6, 1-5 Atlantic Coast) fell to No. 13 Duke University (9-5, 4-1) in a hard-fought 12-8 loss.
BC knew Duke had the advantage on its home turf and decided to make things a little more difficult for the Blue Devils by getting on the board first. Less than two minutes into the game, Kenzie Kent put the Eagles on the board after converting a free position goal. But the 1-0 lead did not last for long, as the Blue Devils fired back and managed to amount a quick 3-1 lead.
Tess Chandler pulled the team within one after finding the net twice halfway through the first frame. And again, Duke pulled away. With just over six minutes left in the half, the Eagles faced a three-goal deficit.
Sarah Mannelly found Kent at the front of the net to give BC another tally, but the Blue Devils netted another, causing the Eagles to trail 7-4 at the half.
BC came out hot and tied the game at seven after a goal by Kate Weeks and two more by Chandler. But Duke snapped the Eagles’ 3-0 scoring streak, making it a 9-7 game. Kent brought BC back within one with 12 minutes remaining.
The Eagles offense fizzled after that, while the Blue Devils snuck three more past Zoe Ochoa. BC struggled to play a tough game of catch-up and ultimately fell 12-8 to Duke.
The Eagles struggled to get the win they desperately needed. Relying on two players to score seven out of the eight goals is no way to beat a deep Duke team. While Kent and Chandler managed to shine for a full 60 minutes, the rest of the BC squad needs to pull together to finish out the season with tenacity.
