The Blue Devils conclude the fall portion of the 2020-21 season with a 2-6 overall record, while Pittsburgh improves to 6-0 and moves into the ACC semifinal Wednesday against Notre Dame.
The two goals scored by Pittsburgh were the fewest all season for the nation's top scoring team. However, it was the nation's leading scorer Valentin Noel providing the dagger for the Panthers in the 62nd minute.
Duke's high pressure gave Pittsburgh fits, forcing the Panthers into turnovers and kept them unable to create out of their defensive third in the opening minutes of the game. Rookie Peter Stroud had the first shot of the night, striking a low shot that was scooped up by Pittsburgh goalie Nick Campuzano.
Pittsburgh, playing its first game in three weeks, shook off early game jitters and worked its way into the action. The Panthers, after the first five minutes, had the better possession overall and started to put pressure on Duke's defense.
Will Pulisic came up with his first of his five saves of the night in the 14th minute, denying a well-struck free kick from Veljko Petkovic. Pulisic punched away the ensuing corner kick as Duke eventually cleared the ball from danger.
After withstanding Pittsburgh's attacks over a nearly 10-minute span, the momentum slowly shifted in the Blue Devils' favor as they again forced the Panthers into turnovers in their defensive third. A foul by Pitt 25 yards from goal put senior Daniel Wright behind the ball for a chance at goal. The veteran's right-footed strike just missed high and kept the game scoreless after 30 minutes.
Despite Duke having the better of play, Pittsburgh took advantage of a turnover at midfield by the Blue Devils and scored against the run of play to go up 1-0 in the 34th minute. Jackson Walti scored for the Panthers, slipping a shot into the lower right corner.
The Blue Devils nearly equalized a minute later as Wright struck the crossbar from 18 yards. Duke continued to put pressure on Pitt and again had a near miss in the 40th minute when Conor Kelly's shot skipped just wide of the left post, sending the Blue Devils into halftime down 1-0.
Hoping to carry that momentum into the second half, the Blue Devils were on the defending end for the first few minutes. Pulisic came up with another massive save just over a minute into the second half, denying Noel from six yards with a fantastic reaction foot save.
After many near misses, Duke equalized with a Stephen O'Connell tally in the 59th minute. His second goal of the year came after a touch from Peter Stroud found Nick Pariano running into the right side of the box. Pariano's shot was denied by Campuzano, but the rebound came right to O'Connell for the tap in.
However, an answer from Pittsburgh just over three minutes later took the wind out of the Duke sails as Noel tapped in a crossing pass from Alexander Dexter for the eventual game winner.
Duke also won the corner kick battle, 6-5. Pulisic finished with five saves, while Campuzano had two stops.
The Blue Devils will resume their 2020-21 campaign in the spring. Stay tuned to GoDuke.com for schedule updates as they become available.
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Duke Falls to No. 1 Pitt, 2-1, in ACC Quarterfinal - Duke University - GoDuke.com
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