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Early into the first half, Duke applied pressure on Syracuse’s offense but Colin Biros gained control of the ball by taking a pass from teammate Olu Oyegunle. The second Biros touched the ball, Blue Devils midfielder Santa Ihara tackled him and forced him to pass high to Jeorgio Kocevski. The ball hit Kocevski on the left side of his head, but the sophomore was able to keep it from being stolen away.

Duke’s Amir Daley pressured Kocevski in the middle of the field, but Kocevski quickly found a streaking Biros up the left side and passed up to him. This pass set up an Orange attack that included three shot opportunities that were all denied by the Blue Devils. The attack eventually ended with SU’s Manel Busquets flying up the right side of the penalty box, where he chipped a shot that was swallowed by Blue Devils goalkeeper Eliot Hamill. But none of this play in Duke’s defensive third would’ve been possible without Kocevski’s initial save of possession with his head and dribbling.

Syracuse (4-4-1, 1-2-0 Atlantic Coast) continued to apply pressure to No. 6 Duke (5-1-0, 2-0-0 Atlantic Coast) throughout the Blue Devils’ eventual 1-0 victory on Saturday. While the Orange were shut out and had only 10 shots against the Blue Devils, Kocevski was key with keeping Duke’s midfielders, specifically sophomore Peter Stroud at bay and controlling possession at key points throughout the game. This is a role that Kocevski has played for the Orange all season.

Because of this, the Blue Devils were held to only eight shots, their second-lowest total all season. And even after Kocevski took a sliding tackle to his right leg that kept him on the ground for several minutes, he still played with speed after he re-entered the game.

“(Kocevski)’s been great today,” Busquets said. “He is a very good center-mid, he kept the ball, and he was the one who kept us in the midfield for most of the day.”

Minutes after the Orange’s only shots of the first half, Kocevski stopped Duke from working within its own half by stealing the ball away from a Blue Devil defender on a standing tackle challenge. Kocevski was able to find teammate Curt Calov on the left side of the penalty box. While Calov was unable to find space for him to take a shot, the play was another crucial turnover where the Blue Devils were unable to generate an attack.

Kocevski helped on the offensive end as well. In the second half, Syracuse was on the attack and Kocevski got the ball at the top of the box. He slalomed between two Duke defenders and cut right away from goal. But he still had the space and balance to get a right-footed cross off that sailed. Biros got a toe on sending it just wide of the left post.

Another way that Kocevski and Syracuse were able to limit Duke was through Kocevski in the air against headers. With 31:15 left in the second half, Oyegunle took a Buster Sjoberg header and kicked the ball back near the centerline where Kocevski was standing. Ihara and Duke teammate Antino Lopez were both right on Kocevski with pressure. But the Liverpool native was able to hit the ball on the back of his head, and the ball flew into Duke’s defensive end where Hilli Goldhar was able to retain possession for Syracuse.

Then, Kocevski fell to the ground in pain, slamming his right leg on the grass. Duke’s Felix Barajas lost possession of the ball in the midfield, and Kocevski looked to give possession back to SU. But Barajas came at full speed and tackled Kocevski right in his right leg. After a few minutes of lying on the ground, Kocevski was able to get up and head back to the sidelines. He wasn’t on the sidelines for long and was soon back on the field, still retaining his speed and quickness from before the injury.

“Jeorgio (Kocevski) was very good today,” McIntyre said. “He had a great time keeping with the speed of the game, and he played a little bit more time in midfield. They’ve got two good midfielders, and we had some today.”

Published on September 25, 2021 at 11:51 pm

Contact Henry: [email protected]