No. 7 Duke Battles to 2-2 Draw with No. 2 Virginia

Saturday, September 11

Durham, N.C.

7:00 PM

Duke University

Virginia

No. 7 Duke Battles to 2-2 Draw with No. 2 Virginia

9/11/2010 11:27:00 PM | Men's Soccer

By: Duke Sports Information

DURHAM, N.C.-Duke University sophomore Ryan Finley scored with 2:24 remaining in the second half as the seventh-ranked Blue Devils battled to a 2-2 double overtime tie with No. 2 Virginia in Atlantic Coast Conference men's soccer action this evening at Koskinen Stadium. Seventh-ranked Duke rallied to tie the game after the Cavaliers scored with 4:40 remaining in regulation.

"The first thing is that we were disappointed that we didn't get that second goal to kind of knock them out," head coach John Kerr said. "We allowed them to get back into the game and they took the game to us a big part of the second half. They tied it up and then they got that late goal. And going into this next stretch, I was looking at what kind of personality our team was going to have and to fight back and get the equalizer I thought our guys showed a lot of character and poise tonight."

The Blue Devils remain unbeaten on the year with a 1-0-2 record, while Virginia moves to 2-0-1 overall. Duke has not lost to the Cavaliers in the regular season under the direction of Kerr.

"In the first ACC game you definitely don't want to come out with a loss so coming away with a tie is a positive for us," Finley said. "We're a little unhappy about going up one and giving up two, but I think we showed a lot of character in scoring that second one."

Duke held a 19-12 advantage on shots and a 10-7 edge in shots on goal for the game. Freshmen Rob Dolot and Jonathan Aguirre both tallied their first collegiate points for the Blue Devils with a goal and an assist, respectively.

Much of the opening 10 minutes were the two teams trying to get into a rhythm of play. As they settled into the game, the Blue Devils started to generate quality scoring looks. Finley took a chance on goal, but was stopped by the Virginia goalkeeper. Just over a minute later, Aguirre fired a shot on frame from about 20 yards out. Cavalier goalie Diego Restrepo made the stop, but a rebound landed at the feet of Dolot who punched it in for a 1-0 Duke lead in the 23rd minute.

Virginia picked up its play in the final 22 minutes as it searched for the equalizer before halftime. The Cavaliers' best chance of the first half came in the 42nd minute as rookie Brian Span got in behind the defense. Duke keeper James Belshaw came off his line to cut down the angle and smother Span's shot and send the Blue Devils into halftime with a 1-0 lead.

The Cavaliers came out strong in the second half and put Duke on its heels in the opening minutes. The Blue Devil defense weathered the storm early on, but Virginia broke through with a tally in the 71st minute as Jimmy Simpson knocked in a shot off of a pass from Ari Dimas. The goal was the first Belshaw had allowed in 247 minutes of action this season.

With the score even both teams continued to press forward. End-to-end action and two more goals filled the final 20 minutes of regulation for the raucous Blue Devil crowd. Virginia garnered the 2-1 lead in the 86th minute with quality passing in Duke's defensive third. TJ Cyrus touched the ball to Span just outside the penalty area and Span moved the ball over the left side for Sean Hiller running through the box. Open on the weak side, Hiller calmly slipped the ball into the right corner to put the Cavaliers in front 2-1 with less than five minutes remaining.

Refusing to come away with a loss, Duke dug in and went forward hoping to register and equalizer. Just 2:16 later, sophomore Andrew Wenger sent the ball in to the box. Finley was able to get the ball and after a scramble and a blocked shot he hit the ball into the back of the net to send the game into overtime.

"[Ryan Finley's] a threat for us," Kerr said. "Every time he gets the ball going forward and running at people, he's dangerous. People have to defend him and he's a great threat for us. He played great tonight."

Duke had the better of play in overtime with a few good scoring chances as it outshot Virginia 5-1 in the overtime periods. In a dramatic final 10 seconds, the Blue Devils won a corner kick. Every player got into the penalty box, but nobody could finish Grossman's service as the squads finished in a 2-2 tie.

Belshaw finished with five saves for the game, while Restrepo had eight stops. Duke held an 8-3 advantage in corner kicks.

Duke returns to action on Sept. 14, hosting George Washington at Koskinen Stadium at 7 p.m. The Blue Devils resume ACC action on Sept. 17 against rival North Carolina on Fox Soccer Channel at 6:30 p.m.