1.) Double down on double deuce. Senior midfielder-turned-attackman Ned Crotty, who wears No. 22, is the leading candidate to win the Tewaaraton Trophy because he may be the country’s finest passer (a Division I-leading 45 assists) and a good finisher (20 goals). He is the undisputed quarterback of the Duke offense, and he made Virginia pay for not crowding him by posting six goals and 10 assists in two Blue Devils wins. Midshipmen freshman Matt Vernam, who has locked up with opponents’ best attackmen, will likely get the unenviable task of marking Crotty. Vernam might help himself by watching game film of Army freshman defenseman Tim Henderson, who got into Crotty’s hands and shut him out in the Blue Devils’ 10-6 win on April 18.

2.) Take care of the ball. No team forces more turnovers, pounces on loose balls, and takes off to kick-start the transition offense better than Duke. Freshman C.J. Costabile is slowly emerging as one of the best long-stick midfielders in the country for his prowess at collecting and clearing the ball, and the Blue Devils thrive on fast breaks – which has not escaped the attention of Navy coach Richie Meade. "The thing about them that’s challenging is they get a lot of goals off situations that are just regular situations," he said. "The ball’s on the ground, and they get up and out and they bang it and they score very quickly. I saw one clip where they were a man down against Virginia and they scored off a 4-on-3 because they pushed it. So we’re going to have to play very, very well defensively."

3.) Work the offense. The Midshipmen value possessions, passing the ball around until an opportunity arises. They must do that effectively against a Duke starting defense that averages 6 feet, 3 inches in height and 220 pounds. Navy won’t run over the Blue Devils, but if the Midshipmen can work the ball around quickly, they might be able to test goalie Rob Schroeder, who has had his shaky moments this season. "This is going to be a very difficult challenge for us," junior attackman Tim Paul said of Duke’s defense. "They’re big, they’re fast, they’re athletic, and they can handle the ball. These guys are All-American caliber guys. They’re going to throw the kitchen sink at us. We’re going to see checks that we probably have never seen before or at least not this year. So we’re going to have to be ready. We’re going to have to have good ball movement, have good speed, and be able to run by our defenders when they get out of place. This will definitely be one of the best defenses we’ve faced this year."