The Georgetown University men’s lacrosse team fell to Duke University 16-6 in Newark, Del., in the quarterfinals of the NCAA tournament May 17. Since Head Coach Kevin Warne was hired in 2013, Georgetown has not advanced past the second round of the tournament, with its last semifinal appearance coming in 1999.
The Hoyas (11-5, 5-0 Big East) struggled to create quality shots against the Blue Devils (11-4) and junior goalie Anderson Moore was peppered with shots on goal, only saving 14 of 30.
Georgetown won the opening faceoff and got right to work offensively. First-year midfielder Jake Bickel found sophomore attacker Jack Ransom out in front of the net, who put the Hoyas ahead 1-0 just under 30 seconds into the game.
Moore made multiple saves during the next five minutes to preserve the Hoyas’ lead, but with 9:41 left in the period, junior defender Ty Banks was called for a hold and Duke immediately scored on its man-up opportunity to tie the game 1-1.
Neither team found the back of the net again until 2:28, when the Blue Devils capitalized on the Hoyas’ fourth turnover of the period, allowing Duke attacker and midfielder Kyle Colsey to fire through Moore’s legs, making it 2-1, a lead they never gave back. Less than a minute later, midfielder Max Sloat found the top right corner from range to put the Blue Devils up 3-1 after the first period.
Georgetown’s offense continued to struggle to open the second period, while Duke’s began to heat up. The Blue Devils scored at 9:19 to make it 4-1. Duke won the ensuing faceoff and faceoff specialist Cal Girard carried the ball all the way downfield before firing home to give the Blue Devils a 4-goal lead.
With seven minutes left in the half, attacker Thomas Mencke muscled his way in front of the crease. His shot barely trickled through Moore into the goal to give Duke a 6-1 lead.
Duke went scoreless the rest of the period, keeping Georgetown trailing by 5 at halftime. After turning the ball over 11 times and managing just 6 shots on goal in the first half, the Hoyas needed to find a spark coming out of the locker room.
Georgetown won the faceoff to start the second half and created a shot for graduate attacker Rory Connor, but his five-hole effort was saved. Duke turned the ball over and on the Hoyas’ next possession, senior midfielder Joe Cesare shook his man on the goalline and snuck the ball in between Blue Devils goalie Patrick Jameison’s legs to cut the lead to 6-2, giving the Hoyas hope.
With 8:50 left in the period, Duke rolled the ball past Moore into the bottom left corner for a 7-2 lead. They scored again at 7:16 and 6:19, stretching their lead to 9-2.
The Blue Devils reached double digits at 5:21, before Rory Connor scored for the Hoyas with 2:07 left in the period to make it 10-3 Duke. The Blue Devils added another with 20 seconds left in the quarter. Still, with under two seconds remaining, senior defender George Acton cashed in on a feed from junior attacker Liam Connor to bring the score to 11-4 going into the fourth period.
Duke wasted no time returning to the scoresheet in the fourth period, scoring at 13:54 and 12:54 to extend their lead to 13-4. Ransom found the net again at 12:16, but the Blue Devils responded at 10:10 and once more at 8:11, giving them a 15-5 lead. Although senior midfielder Lucas Dudemaine brought the Hoyas back within double digits at 6:27, Duke responded with one last late goal.
The final score was 16-6, the first time Georgetown has lost by 10 goals or more since the 2021 NCAA tournament to the University of Virginia, when they lost 14-3. The Hoyas were out-ground-balled 32 to 20 and turned the ball over 15 times in the defeat.
Warne said the Hoyas’ failure to match the Blue Devils’ athleticism contributed to their ground-ball deficit and the high number of turnovers.
“I think a lot of it had to do with the guys in the white jerseys,” Warne said in a postgame press conference. “They were more athletic, they were on our hands. We just looked like we were waiting instead of attacking.”
Following the last game in Rory Connor’s college career, Connor expressed his gratitude for the season, particularly for the chance to play with his brother Liam for one more year and to the Georgetown program for welcoming him as a transfer for his final year.
“This was the best year of my life and I couldn’t be more happy with the way it turned out,” Connor said at the postgame press conference. “Obviously, it stings right now. We really believed that we were going to be the team to make the Final Four, but unfortunately, it wasn’t meant to be. But I couldn’t be more proud of this group, what we’ve been through and what we’ve been able to do this year.”
Warne said the season was successful despite not reaching the semifinal of the NCAA tournament, but that his team can improve next year.
“Absolutely, we were one of eight teams standing,” Warne said. “Do we want to get better? Absolutely. Is there room to get better? Absolutely. Do I have to get better? Absolutely.”
