Feb. 26, 2006
Box Score
Durham, NC - Preseason no. 2 Duke (2-0) played tight man defense and limited quality scoring chances as Villanova (1-1) lost 13-2 to the Blue Devils in Durham this afternoon.
Duke opened the scoring at 10:47 on an unassisted goal by Dan Flannery after the Blue Devils completed a clear and worked the ball up the right side of the field. Brad Ross scored 20 seconds later off an assist by Bret Thompson, and at 9:29 the Blue Devils took a 3-0 lead with a score from Matt Danowski.
Duke played tough defense and forced turnovers as well as killed off a penalty when Ed Douglas was called for slashing, which gave Villanova an extra man opportunity. Senior co-captain Matt Starker (Summit, N.J.) found the back of the net with 42 seconds left in the first quarter to put `Nova on the board. The Wildcats got the ball back after drawing a pushing foul and moved it up the field. Starker fought in towards the right side of the crease and beat Duke goalie Dan Loftus high left.
Villanova had a quality scoring chance at 9:02 in the second when freshman Tim Langan, Jr. (Madison, N.J.) took a shot from just outside the crease on the left side, but Loftus made a point-blank save to preserve the Blue Devils' three-goal lead. `Nova settled down for most of the rest of the second quarter. However, Duke upped its lead to 4-1 on a transition goal at 4:07 by Zach Greer, with the assist from Flannery.
That goal was the first of ten unanswered by the Blue Devils that gave Duke a 13-1 advantage with 3:52 remaining in the game. Greer scored his second and third goals, both in transition, at 13:40 and 9:29 in the third, Kyle Dowd scored from 20 feet at 7:53, 26 seconds later Danowski recorded a wraparound, Dowd scored again on a laser over Villanova senior goalie Joe Canuso's (Moorestown, N.J.) left shoulder, and Matt Zash and Greer both posted goals in the final minute of the third quarter to give Duke an 11-1 lead.
Zash scored an extra man goal at 13:01 in the fourth to continue the scoring barrage. Josh Coveleski notched the Devils' last goal of the game. Villanova got a score from junior Garrett Hohendorf (White Lake, Mich.), his first of the year and second of his career, with 25 seconds left in the game for the final tally.
Duke out-shot `Nova 45-26 and won the groundball battle 52-29. The Blue Devils also held a narrow edge in face-offs, 10-8.
Canuso made several excellent point-blank saves and finished with 18 for the game, one shy of his career high of 19, which he set against Penn on March 6, 2004.
