Blue Devils Take Down No. 22 Clemson in Exhibition

Saturday, August 15

Durham, N.C.

6:00 PM

Duke University

Clemson (Exhibition)

Blue Devils Take Down No. 22 Clemson in Exhibition

8/15/2015 9:23:00 PM | Women's Soccer

By: Duke Sports Information

DURHAM, N.C. – Duke sophomore Imani Dorsey registered a goal in the 72nd minute of action to help guide the Blue Devil women's soccer team to a 1-0 victory over 22nd-ranked Clemson Saturday evening at Koskinen Stadium in exhibition action.

“I thought defensively, we did a lot of the things we have been working on,” said heac coach Robbie Church. “It was the first time we have played against live competition and I thought we did really, really well with it. What really surprised me was kind of the area we really haven't work on, which is once we win the ball how do we counter out of that defense. Boy we countered really well, especially late into the match. We have a lot of healthy bodies this year and it is nice to see.”

Clemson opened the match on the attack taking the first four shots of the contest, but two were saved by Blue Devil sophomore goalkeeper EJ Proctor and the other went wide. Duke settled down and led by the exciting play from freshman Taylor Racioppi, the Blue Devils had two straight shots that were wide and saved by preseason All-ACC goalkeeper Kailen Sheridan of Clemson.

Racioppi had another great chance at the 38:27 mark but the attempt just slipped by the left post and went wide. At the end of the first stanza, Clemson held a 5-4 advantage in shots, but the score remained 0-0.

Clemson came out on the attack once again to open the second half and featured three consecutive shots, but the score remained tied, 0-0. After missing all of last season with an injury, Malinda Allen took the first shot of the second half for the Blue Devils that was saved.

By the 66th minute, Church inserted Duke's original starting lineup on the pitch and the Blue Devils reeled off three straight attempts that were blocked, saved and went wide left. Two of the shots were off the leg of junior All-ACC selection Toni Payne, who created many different chances on the night.

In the 72nd minute, senior Kara Wilson found sophomore Morgan Reid down the right side of the pitch. Reid, who is a product of Cary, N.C., placed a perfect cross into Dorsey, who was able to get in-between two Lady Tiger defenders and beat Sheridan for the first points of the match.

Duke kept putting the pressure on Clemson and added five more shots before a late attempt by Clemson was saved by Blue Devil redshirt freshman goalkeeper Abby Pyne. A native of Dixmont, Maine, Pyne saw her first game action since her junior year of high school as she missed the last two years of play due to knee injuries. Pyne posted one save in almost 20 minutes of action.

For the match, Duke outshot Clemson, 14-9. Racioppi led the way with four shots, while Dorsey and Payne added three each. Sophomore Ashton Miller chipped in two for the Blue Devils. Redshirt sophomore Cassie Pecht returned to the Blue Devil lineup tonight and played 57 minutes, including earning the starting nod at the forward slot. Pecht, who hails from Mechanicsburg, Pa., missed the last two years with a knee injury.

“Clemson is obviously a really talented team and are tough to break down,” said Duke junior captain Christina Gibbons. “We kind of talked about some things in the lockerroom at halftime and I think that gave us a good idea of how we could break them down and get after their defense a little bit more.”

Proctor played 70:23 minutes and totaled four saves on the night for Duke in goal. Sheridan added five saves for Clemson over 90 minutes. The Blue Devils featured a great overall defensive performance on the evening leading to the shutout.

Duke will open the 2015 campaign in the UNC Nike Classic Friday, Aug. 21 at 5:00 p.m., against Fresno State in Chapel Hill, N.C.

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