Florida State ousts Duke

CARY -- Florida State sophomore forward Tiffany McCarty was the difference in a 2-0 victory over Duke in the first round of the ACC Women's Soccer Championship at WakeMed Soccer Park on Wednesday.

But unranked Duke didn't make it easy for top-seeded Florida State, ranked third in the nation. The Seminoles will next face fourth-seeded Virginia Tech, a 1-0 overtime winner over Wake Forest later Wednesday, in a 5 p.m. semifinal game Friday.

Florida State and Duke played to a scoreless draw in early October, and the scoring drought continued through the first 70 minutes of their rematch.

But McCarty, as she had done earlier in the game, rushed the net, drawing out Duke goalkeeper Tara Campbell.

McCarty skirted to the left of Campbell and fired on an open net to score.

"She timed her run very nice," FSU coach Mark Krikorian said. "She's been a much more opportunistic player, reading the play much more quickly this year than last year."

It was never going to be an easy task for No. 8 seed Duke (8-8-4), though with the offensive flourishes of All-ACC first-teamer Elisabeth Redmond, the Blue Devils had chances.

Duke entered the game having given up 18 goals in 19 games. And though the Blue Devils prevented FSU from scoring in the first half, Duke coach Robbie Church said, "We were too defensive."

Duke had no chances to score until late in the first half and finished with only three shots in the half.

McCarty, the ACC's offensive player of the year, was a threat for much of the game, finishing with four shots. Not long after, Florida State (15-3-1) was given another goal when Duke was charged with an own goal, moments after a corner kick.

Now the Blue Devils will have to wait until Monday's NCAA selection show to find out if their season will continue.

"Our future is a little bit unclear where we're going," Church said.

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