June 1, 2010
Costabile's OT goal gives Duke a title
by PR Wire Report/
CJ Costabile (New Fairfield, Conn.) scored the game-winning goal in overtime to give Duke its first men's lacrosse national title on Monday. (photo: Getty Images)
Sophomore CJ Costabile (New Fairfield, Conn.) scored the game-winning goal five seconds into overtime to give Duke University its first NCAA men’s lacrosse national championship in program history on Monday.
Winning the opening faceoff, the longstick midfielder raced down the middle of the field, dodged several Notre Dame defensemen and unleashed a high shot into the net to lift the fifth-seeded Blue Devils to the 6-5 overtime victory in front of 37,126 fans at Baltimore’s M&T Bank Stadium.
“It’s sick,” Costabile said about scoring the game-winning goal in a Duke web site report. “The best feeling about it is we set this goal from the beginning of the year. Guys who have been here before me, [those guys] who have been here three times before and finally seeing them walk off that field with a big smile on their faces are the best moment about that.”
On the game-winning play, Costabile won the faceoff and raced straight down the field, firing a shot high over Notre Dame goalkeeper Scott Rodgers’ right shoulder.
The goal was just the 11th of Costabile’s Duke career and his first game-winning tally for the Blue Devils.
“I let it fly,” Costabile said in a TV interview following the game. “I just let it go and see where it ends up.”
“CJ Costabile made a play at the end and sometimes in big games somebody’s got to make a big play,” Duke coach John Danowski said of the game-winning goal in a TV interview.
In a contest marked by strong defensive play, the two teams combined for just 11 goals, marking the lowest scoring output in an NCAA men’s lacrosse championship game. Neither team led by more than one goal during the game as it featured four lead changes and five ties. The Blue Devils’ attack struggled to find the net against Notre Dame’s Rodgers, who tallied 15 saves in goal.
Duke senior Max Quinzani (Duxbury, Mass.), juniors Zach Howell and Michael Manley and Costabile were selected to the NCAA All-Tournament Team. Rodgers was voted as the tournament’s Most Valuable Player. Duke finishes the season with a 16-4 overall record, while Notre Dame was 10-7.
Howell and senior midfielder Steve Schoeffel each recorded two goals for the Blue Devils, while seniors Ned Crotty and Quinzani were held to just one assist each.
Quinzani, who scored the game-winning goal against Virginia with 12 seconds remaining in the national semifinals on Saturday, was held without a goal for the first time this season and just the seventh time in 78 games at Duke.
Quinzani did extend his point-scoring streak to 66 games, best in the country.
