Duke not running on national title fumes
The euphoria has worn off for Duke.
It’s been more than eight months since the Blue Devils captured their first national championship with a 6-5 overtime victory over Notre Dame at M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore, and coach John Danowski was candid in saying that the team must move on.
“It doesn’t take long to realize that no two years are related to one another,” Danowski said Friday. “In September, you miss the seniors and you don’t know who the freshmen are. So really quickly, you realize it’s a whole new team. And whatever happened last year is certainly a distant memory. A nice one, and they’re all good memories because we love to play and compete and coach. But the bottom line is, there’s nothing that’s related to last year with this team.”
Part of Danowski’s rationalization comes from the graduation of attackmen Ned Crotty, Max Quinzani and Will McKee and midfielders Steve Schoeffel, Jonathan Livadas and Mike Catalino. Those six players combined for 143 goals and 107 assists, which accounted for 57.3 percent of Duke’s points last season.
The departure of Crotty and Quinzani is especially painful, Danowski said.
“Certainly, you don’t replace them,” he said. “They were extremely unqiue individuals. Ned played midfield his first couple years and then played attack. Max was a consistent scoring threat every time he stepped onto the field. So you don’t [replace them]. But with the next group of guys, this team will certainly look different.”
Other notes:
*Dan Wigrizer made 16 of the team’s 20 starts in the cage last season, but the sophomore hasn’t cemented his hold on the starting goalie position this spring. Senior Mike Rock and junior Sean Brady, who is back after being ruled academically ineligible last year, are making their cases for playing. “Sean Brady has been brilliant at times, but he hasn’t played in a year,” Danowski said. “That’s a long time to be away, especially in that position. And Mike Rock is playing the best that he has with us – in practice anyway. With that being said, who knows what that means? But both have gained a lot of experience, and Danny is certainly playing really well. So we’re – as of today – really happy with all three goalies.”
*For all of the attention surrounding the offensive losses, the Blue Devils may be just as vulnerable on defense. Starters Parker McKee and Dan Theodoridas graduated and starter Michael Manley will miss the entire season after tearing the anterior cruciate ligament in his knee last August. Senior Tom Montelli, who was a long-stick midfielder last spring, sophomores Billy Conners and Jimmy O’Neill, and freshman Chris Hipps are competing to start on defense. “It’s still about team defense, trying to force the ball to certain spots on the field, sliding and recovering, recognizing match-ups, giving up poor-angle shots or outside shots,” Danowski said when asked about the impact of Manley’s absence. “In theory, team defense is still the same. It’s just that Mike was a leader and a guy who had been in a lot of big games for us. But on the positive side, Mike’s back for next year, and we’ll get younger and gain experience and create some depth for the future.”
