The Duke women's lacrosse team has become a fixture in the NCAA tournament quarterfinals, winning first-round games the past three seasons by a combined score of 57-14 entering Sunday.

But those games were played on the Blue Devils' home turf, Koskinen Stadium. On Sunday, the Blue Devils had to travel to Georgetown having never won an NCAA tournament game on the road or at a neutral site.

That streak is over. Duke used a strong offensive first half and tough defense in the second half to hold off sixth-seeded Georgetown, 10-8.

"I think our mind-set coming into the tournament was that we didn't care who we had to play or where we had to go," said Duke coach Kerstin Kimel, whose team has advanced to the NCAA tournament quarterfinals seven times in the nine years since the field was expanded to 16 teams.

"We were really just thrilled to be in the tournament," Kimel said. "Our kids enjoy each other so much that travelling is not an obstacle. We cherish that time that we get to spend each trip and really consider the road our friend."

That's good, because Duke will travel to third-seeded Maryland on Saturday to play in the NCAA tournament quarterfinals. The Terrapins (18-2) beat Temple 20-7 earlier Sunday, ending the game with a 12-1 run.

Things didn't look good early for the Blue Devils, who fell behind 2-0 in the first 2:20. But Duke (12-7) rattled off four straight goals and eight of the next 10 to take an 8-4 lead. The Blue Devils led 8-5 at halftime.

The second half would be much more defensive with a nearly 14-minute scoring drought in the middle of the period in which Duke had a 9-6 lead. Georgetown pulled to two down with 1:48 left, but goalkeeper Kim Imbesi made four saves in the final 1:32 to seal the victory.

"I think Kim's playing her best lacrosse right now," Kimel said. "Her toughness and fortitude in the last few minutes really helped us to preserve the win. She made fantastic decisions in goal and really handled the ball well under pressure."

ALSO SUNDAY

MORE DIVISION I

WOMEN'S LACROSSE

NORTH CAROLINA 11, VIRGINIA 7: Corey Donohoe scored five goals, and Megan Bosica had two goals and three assists as UNC (13-6) upset fourth-seeded host Virginia (14-4) in the first round of the NCAA tournament.

The win marked the Tar Heels' third NCAA tournament road win in their history and first since beating Penn State in the first round three years ago.

UNC, which avenged a 16-5 loss to the Cavs in Charlottesville earlier this season, advances to play fifth-seeded Syracuse, which beat Towson 21-9, on Saturday in the NCAA quarterfinals.

SOFTBALL

VIRGINIA TECH 2, N.C. STATE 0: The Wolfpack's run toward its second conference crown in three years ended with a loss to the Hokies in the championship game of the ACC tournament at College Park, Md.

Virginia Tech (43-15) scored two runs, both unearned, the only runs N.C. State gave up in the tournament.

Hokies pitcher Angela Tincher secured 14 strikeouts en route to being voted tournament MVP.

N.C. State ended the season at 31-27. The Pack did not receive an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament. The 64-team field was announced later Sunday.

TAR HEELS TO HOST REGIONAL: North Carolina (50-10-1) will host the Chapel Hill Regional, one of 16 regional sites for the NCAA tournament.

The Tar Heels will open against BYU (42-18) on Thursday. Campbell (41-23) will play Georgia (43-22) in the other opening game in Chapel Hill.

East Carolina (36-28) also made the field. The Pirates will play Louisiana-Lafayette (46-12) in the Baton Rouge Regional on Friday. Host LSU (42-16) and Mississippi Valley State (28-26) are also in that regional.

MEN'S TENNIS

NORTH CAROLINA 4, DUKE 2: The host Tar Heels and Blue Devils met in the NCAA tournament for the first time, and UNC won to advance to the round of 16.

North Carolina put the first point on the board with wins at the No. 1 and 2 doubles spots. Taylor Fogleman and Chris Kearney edged David Goulet and Christopher Price in a tiebreaker 9-8 (2) to take the point.

Duke was strong at the top of the order with Goulet and Reid Carleton earning wins to put the Blue Devils up 2-1, but the Tar Heels won the final three matches for the victory.

(From College News Releases)

NOTES

BASKETBALL

REPORT SAYS MAYO GOT CASH, BENEFITS FROM PROMOTER: A former associate of Southern California freshman guard O.J. Mayo claims the basketball star received thousands of dollars in cash and other gifts from an event promoter over the past four years that would violate NCAA rules, ESPN reported Sunday.

Louis Johnson told ESPN's "Outside the Lines," that Rodney Guillory, a Los Angeles-based event promoter, gave Mayo about $30,000 and other benefits while he attended high school and during his sole season at USC. Mayo has decided to forgo his sophomore year and enter the NBA Draft.

Guillory received monthly payments from Northern California sports agency Bill Duffy Associates, the network reported. Mayo signed with the same agency last month shortly after declaring that he would enter the June 26 draft.

Phone messages left Sunday for Bill Duffy Associates and at a number listed in Guillory's name were not returned.

Johnson said the agency provided Guillory with about $200,000 before Mayo arrived at USC. Guillory used most of the money to support his own lifestyle but also gave a portion of it to Mayo, Johnson told ESPN. Mayo then entered into a verbal agreement that allowed the agency to represent him when he turned pro, Johnson added.

"I will not allow these allegations to become a distraction to me and my family," Mayo said in a statement to ESPN. "I have not engaged in any wrongdoing."

(The Associated Press)