DURHAM, N.C. — Zach Herreweyers scored the second half’s first two goals, giving Loyola University Maryland an 8-7 lead, but No. 5 Duke University reeled off seven unanswered goals to defeat the 12th-ranked Greyhounds, 14-8, Saturday afternoon in non-conference play.
The Blue Devils (6-1 overall) led 5-1 early in the second quarter, but Loyola got within one, 7-6, at halftime.
Loyola scored 46 seconds into the second half as Nikko Pontrello picked up a ground ball behind the cage off a missed shot and fired a pass to Herreweyers on the right side. Herreweyers danced on the crease and stuck a shot over the shoulder of Duke goalkeeper Luke Aaron, tying the game at 7-7.
He added another shortly thereafter as Ryan Fournier made a transition run into the box before giving it up to his fellow Canadian for the go-ahead goal with 12:17 left in the third quarter.
The goal, however, was the last that Loyola would score as Myles Jones tallied one of his game-high four 62 seconds later, starting a 7-0 run that came from goals by Jones and Deemer Class. The Greyhounds had only six shots and turned the ball over 10 times from that point.
Jones would score three in the third quarter and one in the fourth, while Class matched his game-high total with four of his own, three coming after the Greyhounds took their lead.
The Blue Devils outshot Loyola, 48-26, and picked up 35 ground balls to the Greyhounds’ 20 despite having only an advantage of one in faceoffs, 13-12. Duke scored eight of its 14 goals after gaining possession via Loyola turnovers.
Case Matheis logged a hat trick 20 minutes, 32 seconds into the game, scoring his third off a Deemer Class assist with 9:28 on the second-quarter clock, giving Duke a 6-2 advantage.
Brian Sherlock, however, scored his second of the game, using a hesitation move to gain space and score at 8:31. Romar Dennis then scored his second, as well, launching a deep shot from the top left at 5:25 after Zack Sirico fed him from behind the cage.
Loyola tacked on its fifth goal of the game as Fournier found Nikko Pontrello for a tally at 3:25, and the Greyhounds tied the score at 6-6, with 67 seconds left in the first half as Sherlock scored his third of the game off a Dennis assist, capping a 4-0 Loyola run.
Duke, however, jumped back in front 17 ticks later as Jack Rowe won the faceoff after Sherlock’s goal, ran into the box and buried his first goal of the season with 50.7 left before the break.
The Blue Devils’ 14 goal output could have been more if not for good play in the cage by Grant Limone. The freshman made a career-high 15 saves including three at point-blank range during Duke’s run.
Loyola is back in action, again on the road, when it travels to West Point, N.Y., for a Saturday, March 14, game at the U.S. Military Academy.
