Want to know what playing Duke this year is going to look like? Look no further than the final 15-plus minutes of the game.
It started with two seconds left in the third period when Sean Lulley scored off an assist from Brennan O’Neill. Then O’Neill scored himself. The next four goals were all scored by different Duke players — Joe Robertson, Jake Caputo, Nakeie Montgomery and Dyson Williams, in that order.
That spurt turned a five-goal lead into an 11-goal lead against a Denver team that entered play at No. 10 in the Nike/USA Lacrosse Division I Men’s Top 20. O’Neill and Williams did the heavy lifting, each recording four goals and two assists, but it was a team effort in No. 17 Duke’s 19-10 win.
Nine different Blue Devils scored. Outside of big games from O’Neill, Williams and Nakeie Montgomery (three goals, one assist), Lulley and Robertson each scored twice. John Danowski has no shortage of options on the offensive side, that’s for sure.
Brennan makes it look so easy.
— USA Lacrosse Magazine (@USALacrosseMag) February 19, 2022
The sophomore is making his presence felt, as @DukeMLAX leads @DU_MLAX 9-6. pic.twitter.com/VkiKtC54dQ
Duke dominated on the ground with a 36-19 advantage on ground balls, led in that category by Tyler Carpenter with seven.
A seesaw first quarter was not indicative of how the game would ultimately play out. Duke opened with a 3-1 lead, but Johnny Marrocco, Riley Curtis and JJ Sillstrop orchestrated a 4-0 Denver run to take a 5-3 lead. Williams and Charlie O’Connor responded with goals for Duke, tying the score at 5 heading into the second quarter.
It was all Blue Devils from there. Duke (4-1) scored four of five goals in the second quarter and closed the game on a 14-5 run.
Denver (2-1) next plays No. 16 Jacksonville, which upset Duke last week. The Blue Devils face another ranked opponent in No. 14 Delaware on Tuesday.