MLAX | Hopkins shocks No. 1 Duke to set up date with Syracuse
By John Clayton
Posted: 5/24/08, 7:58 PM EST Section: Sports
May 24, 7:57 p.m. FOXBOROUGH, Mass. - To say Johns Hopkins has come a long way since the last time it played Duke would be a bit of an understatement.
On April 5, Hopkins was demolished by the Blue Devils by double digits, a loss that dropped the Blue Jays to 3-5 on the season, and a far cry for national title contention.
What a difference six weeks makes.
The fifth-seeded Blue Jays have reeled off eight wins since the nadir of its season, the latest and most dramatic of those coming Saturday - a 10-9 upset of those same Blue Devils in front of 48,224 at Gillette Stadium.
Hopkins will try to make it three national championships in four years Monday against third-seeded Syracuse (1 p.m., ESPN). The Orange beat second-seeded Virginia earlier in the day, 12-11, in double overtime. It's the fourth time the two sides will play in a national title game and the first since 1989. Each has won twice.
On Saturday, the Blue Jays were able to keep enough possession to bog down Duke's high-octane offense, which came into the game averaging 15.5 goals a game, tops in the nation. Instead, the Blue Devils were held to single-digits for the first time all year, and went more than 20 minutes without a goal in one stretch during the second and third quarters.
The Blue Devils had possession with time winding down, but were unable to get a good look to tie the game.
"Obviously (against Duke), your offense is your best defense, and your faceoffs are your best defense," Hopkins head coach Dave Pietramala said. "I don't think we had our best day at the X, but we won our share and kept possession of the ball."
It's the third straight year Duke (18-2) has lost to Johns Hopkins (11-5) in the final four - the Blue Jays beat the Blue Devils in the championship game in 2005 and 2007.
Even with the championship looming, the Blue Jays took time to revel in their upset.
"I don't think there's a better feeling," said sophomore goalie Michael Gvozden, who hurled his stick into the air as time expired. "To upset these guys, such a tremendous team, in an atmosphere like this, it doesn't get much better than that."
On April 5, Hopkins was demolished by the Blue Devils by double digits, a loss that dropped the Blue Jays to 3-5 on the season, and a far cry for national title contention.
What a difference six weeks makes.
The fifth-seeded Blue Jays have reeled off eight wins since the nadir of its season, the latest and most dramatic of those coming Saturday - a 10-9 upset of those same Blue Devils in front of 48,224 at Gillette Stadium.
Hopkins will try to make it three national championships in four years Monday against third-seeded Syracuse (1 p.m., ESPN). The Orange beat second-seeded Virginia earlier in the day, 12-11, in double overtime. It's the fourth time the two sides will play in a national title game and the first since 1989. Each has won twice.
On Saturday, the Blue Jays were able to keep enough possession to bog down Duke's high-octane offense, which came into the game averaging 15.5 goals a game, tops in the nation. Instead, the Blue Devils were held to single-digits for the first time all year, and went more than 20 minutes without a goal in one stretch during the second and third quarters.
The Blue Devils had possession with time winding down, but were unable to get a good look to tie the game.
"Obviously (against Duke), your offense is your best defense, and your faceoffs are your best defense," Hopkins head coach Dave Pietramala said. "I don't think we had our best day at the X, but we won our share and kept possession of the ball."
It's the third straight year Duke (18-2) has lost to Johns Hopkins (11-5) in the final four - the Blue Jays beat the Blue Devils in the championship game in 2005 and 2007.
Even with the championship looming, the Blue Jays took time to revel in their upset.
"I don't think there's a better feeling," said sophomore goalie Michael Gvozden, who hurled his stick into the air as time expired. "To upset these guys, such a tremendous team, in an atmosphere like this, it doesn't get much better than that."
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