hokies look to get back on track in showdown with no. 8 duke

Topher Wagner

April 17, 2021

DURHAM, N.C. — Following its biggest win of the season against No. 19 Elon, Virginia Tech (4-8, 0-6 ACC) aims to stay hot on the road against an ACC foe, No. 8 Duke (8-5, 3-5 ACC).

When the Hokies fell out of the Top 20 rankings and fell to 3-8, disappointment began to settle in for head coach John Sung’s squad.

Coming into a matchup against No. 19 Elon on Wednesday, and sitting at 0-7 in ranked games this season, Virginia Tech didn’t have high hopes against one of the upstart teams in the CAA. But despite the odds, the Hokies prevailed for their best performance of the season, giving the Phoenix their first loss behind a strong defensive outing.

Going into another ranked matchup against No. 8 Duke, the Hokies will hope that their newfound defensive prowess was not a ruse as they continue to pick up a few more wins before the ACC Tournament begins at the end of the month.

For Duke, the Blue Devils aim to continue their strong season after an 18-6 beatdown of No. 15 Louisville. Against the Cardinals, Duke jumped out to a quick 8-0 lead and never looked back, dominating draw controls and possession time all game long.

With a rematch against archrival No. 1 North Carolina looming next week, Duke will have to be sure not to look ahead as it prepares for a scrappy Virginia Tech squad that gave it some trouble last time around.

Saturday will be the 25^th all-time matchup between the two ACC foes, with Virginia Tech taking just three of the previous contests. It will also mark the opponents’ second game against one another this year, with Duke prevailing 12-8.

In that game, the Blue Devils held a narrow 7-6 lead at the half but held on to win over the Hokies despite only outshooting them by a single shot. In one of Tech’s biggest games of the season, this is sure to be another great ACC game.

Virginia Tech Keys to the Game: Win the Turnover Battle

Against Elon, Virginia Tech dominated in large part due to a strong defensive outing, forcing 16 turnovers as the Phoenix were never able to set up on offense all game long.

In their last matchup against Duke, the Hokies narrowly fell despite winning the turnover battle by four. In this rematch, Tech will need a similar defensive performance against one of the best teams in the ACC.

Duke Keys to the Game: Win Draw Controls

In their blowout win over Louisville, the Blue Devils were in control all game, particularly because of their dominance of winning draws. Duke won 19 draw controls — 12 more than Louisville —and maintained possession for much of the game. Facing a Virginia Tech team that won plenty of draws against Elon, Duke will need to be at its best in this game.

Virginia Tech Player to Watch: Morgan Berman

During this up and down season for Virginia Tech, its defense has failed in several big moments, as an inability to close out games has doomed it down the stretch.

That was not the case against Elon. In the Hokies’ win, goalie Morgan Berman was electric, with six saves as the main defensive catalyst in Tech’s upset.

Her five goals allowed were also the fewest surrendered against a ranked opponent in Hokie history. For VT to pull off another upset, Berman will have to continue her strong play.

Duke Player to Watch: Katie Cronin

All season long, Cronin has been one of the best players for the Blue Devils, leading the team in both goals and shots as the senior has guided them to a top 10 ranking.

However, to her standards Cronin had a relatively quiet game against Virginia Tech earlier this season, putting up just two goals as the Hokies were able to neutralize her on offense for much of the game.

Coming off the huge win over Louisville, Duke will need its best player to continue her stellar play to avoid its 6^th loss of the season.

Score Prediction: Duke 9, Virginia Tech 8

For much of the season, these two teams were trending in opposite directions. The Hokies have been through the ringer this year, dropping to 4-8 and still winless in the ACC despite such high expectations during the preseason.

However, Tech is coming off of its best win of the year, finally beating a ranked opponent while being driven by a great defensive performance. In their last game against Duke, the Hokies were in it the entire game, but lost because the Blue Devils simply converted on more offensive opportunities while Tech failed to do so.

With nine different players scoring double digit goals this season, Duke simply has too much firepower on offense to be put down. Even facing this rejuvenated Virginia Tech squad, Duke will continue to find ways to win as it holds on, 9-8.