Upcoming Event: Men's Lacrosse versus Cornell on April 11, 2026 at 2 p.m.
/
2 p.m.
Men's Lacrosse
vs Cornell
Men's Lacrosse News and Notes
3/22/2000 12:00:00 AM | Men's Lacrosse
#9 Duke (3-2, 1-0 ACC) vs. #6 North Carolina (6-0)
March 22, 2000 * Durham, N.C.
March 22, 2000 * Durham, N.C.
Duke Hopes to Halt Losing Skid with Second ACC Victory...
After two straight one-goal losses on the road, the ninth-ranked Duke Blue Devils return home to host arch-rival North Carolina
in a midweek contest on Wednesday, March 22 at 7:30 p.m. in Duke's Koskinen Stadium.
After getting of to a 3-0 start with wins over Ohio State, Butler and Maryland, all at home, Duke has suffered two one-goal losses, to then sixth-ranked Loyola and Brown on the road the last two weeks. It marks the first time since the 1996 season the Blue Devils have lost two regular-season games in a row.
Duke seeks to get back on the winning track by notching their second ACC victory of the season against the Tar Heels. The Blue Devils have notched two conference victories only four times in program history: 1954 (2-0), 1987 (2-1), 1997 (2-1), and last season (2-1).
Mike Pressler Celebrates a Decade with Duke...
Duke head coach Mike Pressler, the winningest coach in Duke lacrosse history, is in his 10th season with the Blue Devils.
Pressler is ranked third nationally among active coaches with a 71.6 career winning percentage (166-66) and is 11th nationally in career wins with 166.
Pressler has compiled an 90-47 record in Durham (.656) and has taken the Blue Devils to all six of their NCAA Tournament appearances, including the school's first Final Four in 1997.
Blue Devil Personnel...
Senior attackman T.J. Durnan (Rockville Centre, N.Y.) leads the Blue Devils and ranks second in the ACC in scoring, with 21
points on the year (4.20 a game). Durnan also ranks third in the conference in goals scored with 13 on the year (2.6 a game).
The other half of Duke's senior attack tandem, Jared Frood (Elbridge, N.Y.) has 17 points on the year with eight goals and nine assists. Frood ranks fifth in the conference in assists per game (1.80). Junior attacker Greg Patchak (Timonium, Md.) is the team's third-leading scorer with nine goals and five assists for 14 points.
As a team, the Blue Devils are scoring 11.60 goals per game while allowing 9.20. Junior goalkeeper Matt Breslin (Mountain Lakes, N.J.) has an 9.2 GAA with a .549 save percentage.
Scouting the Tar Heels...
After winning its first six games, all at home, North Carolina is off to its best start since the 1993 season. The Tar Heels have also
already equaled its win total for the entire 1999 campaign, as they finished 6-9 last season.
Wednesday's game is the ACC opener for UNC, as their wins have come over Fairfield, Butler, Navy, Delaware, Penn and Ohio State.
The Tar Heels are led by senior attackman Chase Martin, who currently ranks third in the ACC in scoring with 4.17 points per game. He also leads the league in goals scored (17) and ground balls (37).
The Last Time We Met - Duke 9, UNC 7...
T.J. Durnan paced the Blue Devils with three goals as the Blue Devils topped North Carolina, 9-7, in the semifinals of the ACC
Championship, held at UNC's Fetzer Field, last April.
UNC got on the board first, but Duke responded with four straight goals, all in the first quarter, to lead 4-1. The Blue Devils increased that lead to 9-3 by the middle of the third quarter, then held off a furious rally by the Tar Heels as UNC scored four unanswered goals in the closing 19 minutes of the contest.
Duke goalkeeper Matt Breslin tallied a career-high 16 saves in the contest en route to earning All-Tournament team honors.
The win over the Tar Heels avenged Duke's lone regular season loss in 1999, as UNC topped Duke at home earlier in the year, 10-9.
The Series With the Heels...
Duke and North Carolina, who played the very first lacrosse game in the state of North Carolina on April 7, 1938, have a long
history. Wednesday's game marks the 52nd meeting between the two teams, with the Tar Heels holding a 33-18 lead in the
series. Duke, however, has won six of the last eight meetings. The two squads split their meetings last year, with UNC winning
the regular season contest, 10-9, while Duke beat the Tar Heels in the semifinals of the ACC Tournament, 9-7.
Last Time Out: Brown Stuns Blue Devils By a Goal...
Playing in freezing temperatures following a Friday night snow storm, the Duke Blue Devils suffered a second-straight one-goal
defeat, this time at Brown.
After the teams alternated their first three goals, Brown broke it open, gaining a 6-3 advantage just before the half. The Blue Devils tied it up again with three straight goals of their own. The teams continued to trade goals in the final period, with Brown gaining the final advantage, 10-9.
T.J. Durnan led Duke, scoring three goals and an assist. Nick Hartofilis (Huntington, N.Y.) scored two goals, while freshman Kevin Cassese (Port Jefferson Station, N.Y.) scored the first two goals of his collegiate career.
Breslin Named ACC Player of the Week...
Junior goalkeeper Matt Breslin was tabbed the ACC Men's Lacrosse Player of the Week after the Blue Devils defeated
eighth-ranked Maryland on March 4. Breslin recorded a season-high 13 saves in the 9-8 win over the Terps. The junior was solid
late in the contest, as he held Maryland scoreless for the final 18:56 of the game, which included a one-minute man-down period
for Duke. Maryland also had two shots on goal in the final minute of the contest, but was unable to score against Breslin. He also
helped hold Maryland to 1-of-4 on EMOs.
This was the first such honor of his career.
Centurions Durnan and Frood Continue to Climb the Scoring Chart...
OK, they're not even close to being 100 years old, but senior attackmen T.J. Durnan and Jared Frood reached the century mark
in 1999 in points scored and continue to climb Duke's 100-point chart this season.
Frood became the 25th player in Duke history to score 100 points on April 14 last season versus North Carolina. He finished
the year with 126 career points and after the first five games of the 2000 campaign, is sitting in 15th place all-time with 143 points.
Durnan became the 26th player to reach 100 points during a 22-5 victory over St. Andrews last season. Totaling 104 points after his junior season, Durnan is now in 19th place with 125 career points. Another player from the 1999 squad, Scott Diggs, also joined the century club during the St. Andrews game last season and finished his Blue Devil career with 104 points.
Still Tough on Non-Conference Foes...
With the loss to Loyola on March 12, the Blue Devils' regular-season, non-conference winning streak was snapped at 27 games.
Duke started out 2-0 against non-ACC teams this year after posting a perfect 10-0 regular-season record against teams outside the ACC in 1998 and a 9-0 record last year. The Blue Devils' last regular-season loss to a non-conference opponent prior to the Loyola game was a 9-8 overtime loss to Brown in 1997.
...and Especially at Home
The Blue Devils have maintained another streak in the 2000 campaign, winning 16 straight regular-season games against
non-conference opponents at home. This streak also dates back to the overtime loss to Brown on March 8, 1997.
Season-Opening Success...
The Blue Devils have traditionally been successful in their season openers, winning eight of 10 during the Pressler era thus far. In
fact, Duke's only two season-opening losses during the last 10 seasons have come at home against Maryland.
Durnan Cracks the Top 10...
With 83 career goals entering the 2000 campaign, T.J. Durnan needed just eight more to appear on Duke's top 10 all-time goals
scored list. He sealed that up the first weekend of the season, scoring five goals against Ohio State and three more versus Butler
to reach 91 and jump into 10th place on the list. Currently he has 96 career goals. Former Blue Devils Dave Hagler (1978-82)
and Peter Rubin (1986-88) head up the list with 156 career goals apiece.
Frood Lends a Helping Hand...
At this pace, Frood should jump onto Duke's all-time assist chart during his senior season. Currently with 61 career assists and a
team-high nine so far this season, he needs 11 more to crack Duke's top 10.
Frood notched a season high three assists last week against Brown.
The Face-Off Factor...
EMO Madness...
Duke has also been successful in limiting its opponents' EMO success. Their extra-man defense has allowed just six goals on 23
attempts for a .261 winning percentage.
Hartofilis Brothers a Hit...
The Hartofilis' are the only pair of brothers on this year's squad, although two other current Blue Devils had brothers who played
on the team last year: Michael Keating (Gladwyne, Pa.) (brother: Dan) and Terrence Keaney (Alexandria, Va.) (brother: Brendan).
Coming Up Next...
CAREER GOAL LEADERS
Name Yrs. Gls.
1 Dave Hagler 1978-82 156
Peter Rubin 1986-88 156
2 John Fay 1995-98 150
3 Josh Dennis 1987-90 129
4 Joe Matassa 1989-92 113
5 Ken Lukes 1984-87 108
Rod Finlayson 1973-76 108
6 Tony Cullen 1978-80 106
7 Steve Sachs 1966-69 101
8 T.J. Durnan 1997-pres. 96
Attackman Jared Frood is not only a prolific scorer, he also knows when to dish it off for the score. Last year he recorded a
team-high 27 assists, a mark which also ranked third in the ACC and 22nd nationally.
Duke, who led the country last year in face-off percentage, winning 63 percent, is performing even better through the first four
games this season. The Blue Devils have won the face-off battle in every game so far this season, taking 78 of 118 for a 66.1
winning percentage. Leading the way for the second straight year is Scott Bross (Ellicott City, Md.) who has won 65 percent of
his face-offs (65-of-100). Bross also led the nation last year with a 64.7 percentage. Other players who have taken face-offs for
Duke so far this year include freshman Kevin Cassese (Port Jefferson Station, N.Y.) (6-8, .750), sophomore Jamie Kennedy
(Darien, Conn.) (6-9, .667) and sophomore Dan Chemotti (Syracuse, N.Y.) (1-1, 1.000).
Duke also led the country last year in extra-man opportunities, converting on 37-of-66 opportunities for a dominating 56.1
winning percentage. So far this season the Blue Devils have maintained that level of success, winning 12-of-23 EMOs for a .522
percentage. Up until last week, when they went 2-of-8 in EMOs against Brown, the Blue Devils were winning nearly 67 percent.
The duo of Chris and Nick Hartofilis has been very effective so far this season, combining for 19 points on 14 goals and five
assists. Nick, a senior midfielder and preseason All-America, is tied for fourth on the team in scoring with 10 points, while Chris,
a junior midfielder is sixth with nine points. Chris also leads the squad in ground balls with 21 on the season.
After spending the last two weekends on the road, the Blue Devils remain at home this Sunday, March 26, hosting fourth-ranked
Georgetown. The revenge factor will come into play for Duke as the Hoyas, currently 5-0 on the season, eliminated the Blue
Devils in last year's NCAA quarterfinals. Sunday's game is set for 1:00 p.m. at Duke's Koskinen Stadium.
DUKE'S RECORD WHEN...
At home 3-0
On the road 0-2
At a neutral site 0-0
In the ACC 1-0
Out of the ACC 2-2
In overtime 0-0
In tournaments 0-0
Leading at half 1-0
Trailing at half 0-2
Tied at half 2-0
More face-off wins 3-2
More face-off losses 0-0
More ground balls 3-2
Opp, has more GB 0-0
Scoring 0-10 goals 1-2
Scoring 11-14 goals 1-0
Scoring 15-19 goals 1-0
Scoring 20+ goals 0-0
Duke Men's Lacrosse: Excellence on and off the field defined
Friday, August 29
Duke Men's Lacrosse Recruiting Video
Friday, August 29
Duke Men's Lacrosse: Excellence On and Off the Field Defined
Friday, August 29
Andrew McAdorey Media Availability 5-7
Wednesday, May 07
