Kielmeyer Sparks Loyola to First-Round Win over Feisty Duke

PHILADELPHIA – Regan Kielmeyer’s breakout scoring helped Loyola pull away from a determined Duke team for a 16-11 win in their NCAA first-round NCAA tournament game at Franklin Field on Friday to set up a rematch with host Penn on Sunday.

Kielmeyer scored a career-high five goals and Chase Boyle and Catie Corolla had hat tricks as the Greyhounds (18-2) held a 5-0 advantage in the fourth quarter to help them advance past Duke (10-9).

“We love to keep it interesting,” said Kielmeyer, a graduate attacker. “We knew that we did have a lot left in us and we just had to find it. Once we start clicking and the chemistry is firing, this team is absolutely unstoppable.”

Penn (14-4), which never left any doubt in a 16-5 first-round win over Richmond, defeated Loyola two weeks ago 13-6 in one of the Quakers’ best games of the year.

“We had a great game against them, so I’m sure they’re eager to play us,” Penn coach Karin Corbett said. “It’s going to be a battle.”

It was one of only two losses Loyola suffered all season, and likely cost the Greyhounds the chance to host an NCAA tournament game.

“Loyola wasn't very happy with their seed is my guess,” Corbett said. “They were seeded too low, so they have something to prove. We played great that night. We’re going to have to play great again.”

Duke certainly seemed to give them a tough challenge with their first-round game plan. The Blue Devils focused on stopping Loyola’s top three scorers — Boyle, a Tewaaraton Award finalist and the nation’s leading goal scorer, as well Sydni Black and Georgia Latch. It was effective through three quarters. Black had just one score, Latch had two goals before picking up a second yellow card in the third quarter and Boyle was held to one goal.

“It’s inevitable that Sydni Black, Chase Boyle and Georgia Latch will get a face guard, and that just allowed me to see the lanes and all the things that opened up,” Kielmeyer said. “They do garner a lot of attention out there.”

Kielmeyer more than picked up the slack. She had never scored more than two goals in a game but had a hat trick in the first half alone. She scored twice more in the fourth quarter to seal the win.

“She’s a fifth-year kid,” Duke coach Kerstin Kimel said. “Fifth-year kid steps up big-time.”

Neither team held more than a two-goal edge until the fourth quarter. Duke held leads of 1-0 and 2-1 in the first eight minutes of the first quarter, and when Mattie Shearer ripped a shot from the right side, the Blue Devils had a 3-1 advantage, their biggest of the game.

After the teams traded goals, Loyola tied it with goals from Kielmeyer and Black to tie it going into the second quarter. Kielmeyer’s third goal gave Loyola its first lead of the game. Latch’s goal with 29 seconds left in the second quarter gave Loyola a 7-5 halftime lead.

Duke scored three unanswered goals to take an 8-7 lead early in the second half. Lexi Schmalz scored her second goal of the game, Katie DeSimone deposited her third and Carly Bernstein’s first gave Duke its first lead since it was 4-3.

It was the last lead of the game for the Blue Devils, a team whose at-large bid drew some skeptics. Duke used that as motivation.

“We really felt like we deserved the opportunity to be in the tournament,” Kimel said. “Obviously for three quarters of the game, we played really well and competed really well and we just didn’t in the fourth. So it’s a tough, tough pill to swallow.”

DeSimone led the Blue Devils with five goals. Kennedy Everson was brilliant early in net with nine of her 11 saves coming in the first half. Duke had won 14 straight NCAA tournament first-round games.

On the other side, Loyola was feeling the pressure as the game remained tight through 45 minutes. Boyle’s first goal of the game with 10:05 left in the third quarter tied it and the Greyhounds never trailed again, although Duke tied it twice more before the fourth quarter started.

“Every time we got a little bit of a lead, they could just come back nipping at our heels and they’re a tough team,” Loyola coach Jen Adams said. “They fought hard today and so I’m really proud of us to be able to pull it out. It felt a lot closer than a five-goal game, but if we could have played like we did in the fourth quarter for the entire three I think it could have been a different story.”

The Greyhounds went ahead 9-8 on Anna Ruby’s second goal of the game. A free-position goal by Duke’s Maddie McCorckle with 16.5 seconds left tied it going into the fourth quarter. Adams felt better when Black came over to her on the sidelines in the fourth quarter and promised she and the upperclassmen wouldn’t let Loyola lose.

A Duke penalty in the final ticks of the third quarter gave Loyola a two-minute advantage to start the fourth quarter. Boyle scored her second goal when she fired in a free-position goal in the first minute of the final quarter for a Greyhound lead. Loyola made it a two-goal lead in the next minute on a goal by Alanna Wray. Goalie Lauren Spence made one of her best saves to preserve the advantage and Loyola rolled from there to earn another shot at Penn while the regular season loss is still fresh in its mind.

“Ever since the Penn game, we have looked back and we’ve thanked Penn for a lot of things,” Kielmeyer said. “They exposed us in a lot of areas. We’ve tightened up and we’ve turned the corner and we’re just ready for each opportunity that comes with the Penn game.”

Penn took care of its business quickly and thoroughly against Richmond in Friday’s first game in a light but steady rain. Penn seniors Niki Miles and Kelly Van Hoesen will celebrate graduation in 10 days on Franklin Field but are making the most of their final games at the historic venue. Miles scored four goals to pace the offense and had 12 draw controls in a 17-8 Penn edge while Van Hoesen tied a season-high with 11 saves as Penn took control from the outset.

“The whole team is extremely grateful to be playing on Franklin Field,” Miles said. “It’s an extremely special place and we worked for a long time to get here to host and be a part of the tournament. We’re so excited for everything to come.”

It was the first NCAA tournament game Penn has hosted since 2017. The Quakers and Richmond had never played before Friday.

Penn is at its best when it’s not just Miles and Anna Brandt scoring. Brandt, Catherine Berkery, Lexi Edmonds and Maria Themelis each had two goals while Erika Chung had five assists.

Abby Francioli made 12 saves for Richmond. Charlotte Edwards and Colleen Quinn scored two goals apiece for the Spiders. Richmond won the Atlantic 10 championship in what was considered a rebuilding year after losing 12 players from last year’s A10 championship squad.

“It doesn't really feel good now to say it, but being able to play a team like that, you can learn a lot,” second-year Richmond coach Anne Harrington said. “We want to be on their level. We want to be hosting NCAAs in the future. Next year we'll have a group that's been to the tournament two years in a row, so it always helps to have that experience.”

Penn led 3-1 after the first quarter on a pair of goals by Miles followed by Natasha Gorriaran’s second goal of the season — on her second shot of the season — following a Richmond turnover. Van Hoesen made a spectacular save on a shot from the doorstep to preserve the two-goal lead going into the end of the quarter.

“It just instills so much belief,” Miles said. “We have so much trust in the defense. Kelly's like my best friend in the whole world, and seeing her do that is so awesome. She's so athletic and so humble. All of the team just gets so juiced on every single play she makes.”

Van Hoesen had eight saves in the first half, including five in the first quarter that gave Penn momentum.

“I watch a lot of film before each game, so I try to remember where certain attackers shoot,” Van Hoesen said. “But most of the time I really just focus on reacting, getting my hands up to the ball and then automatically moving to the next play.”

Penn scored the first three goals of the second quarter for a 6-1 lead. Back-to-back goals brought the Spiders within 6-3 but Berkery scored for a 7-3 Quakers edge at halftime. Richmond would only manage two third-quarter goals the rest of the way.

“My defensive unit is absolutely unbelievable,” Van Hoesen said. “We have the best defense in the country and we really play as a unit, which inspires me. Every game they do their job, so I know I need to do my job for them.”

Penn’s defense was in top form when it beat Loyola barely two weeks ago. The six goals were a season-low for Loyola. Brandt had four goals and Van Hoesen made nine saves. Penn expects the rematch to be tighter.

Adams will coach Sunday with the yellow and green ribbon she had pinned on her jacket Friday. The ribbon is in memory of Callum Robinson, the former Team Australia and pro lacrosse defenseman who was murdered along with his brother and friend last week in Mexico.

Robinson lived for a short period with Adams, who also is Australian. She called her Baltimore townhome an “Aussie Safe House.”

“As hard as it is to coach a lacrosse game, there’s no one more competitive or that enjoyed competing or had the love of lacrosse more than Callum,” Adams said. “And I was lucky enough to share in so much of that in his life. There’s not a lot you can do. That’s the hardest part — you just feel helpless. I feel helpless for his family and there’s not really anything you can say or do that can help. The lacrosse community has been incredible at rallying around literally a giant in the sport.”