GAINESVILLE — At a glance, Florida’s return to the Final Four in women’s lacrosse is hard to figure based on who the Gators lost and what it takes to get back.
Coach Amanda O’Leary credited her players’ determination for her program’s continued success after No. 4 UF beat No. 15 Duke 11-9 during Thursday’s Elite Eight matchup at Donald R. Dizney Stadium.
“It just is a testament to how hard they worked,” she said. “It wasn’t a rebuild, it wasn’t a reload, it’s just, let’s go. Just super proud of this team and their effort.”
Riding a 17-game winning streak, the Gators (20-2) now push to make the next step and play for the national title during their third trip the national semifinals and second straight appearance — this time at Gillette Stadium May 23-25 in Foxborough, Mass.
“We’re feeling pretty confident as a team,” said midfielder Gabbi Koury, one of five Gators with two goals against Duke. “It’s awesome that we made it to the Final Four, but that’s not our goal. We want to get to the next level. We’ve been working really hard, nothing’s stopping us.
“We want to stay undefeated from here on out.”
Florida pounced on Duke (15-5), but an 11-2 lead slipped away as the Blue Devils found their stride to reel off seven unanswered goals during the third and fourth periods.
Yet after senior attacker and leading scorer Carly Bernstein cut the lead to 11-9 with 6:28 to go, UF sealed the deal behind a critical three-minute stretch featuring a close-call for the Blue Devils, a stellar defensive possession by the Gators and a charging call on Duke’s Chloe Hunter with 3:18 remaining.
Midfielder Caitlin Barrett’s shot with 05:35 to go ricocheted off the post to a collection of gasps, sighs and “a jolt” to the nervous system in the words of O’Leary.
“That’s the way this game goes sometimes,” said Duke coach Kerstin Kimel, who came up shy of her eighth trip to the Final Four in 29 seasons.
Two Blue Devils’ possessions later Florida forced a 90-second shot violation to enliven a defense on its heels.
“It gave us a lot of energy,” sophomore defender Ashley Dyer said. “We really needed to stop at that moment.”
Following Hunter’s foul on the next possession, the Gators were able to run out the clock, leading to a celebration on the field and among the crowd.
Despite her share of anxious moments, O’Leary, who moved to 3-6 in the national quarterfinals, said she never doubted the outcome.
“I believe in in this team,” she said. “They’re they’re too competitive. They want to win too badly.”
This drive to succeed allowed a team with plenty of new faces and veterans in new roles to build on a record-setting season in 2024.
Florida lost 78.5% of its scoring and 16 seniors from a 20-3 squad that fell 15-11 to defending national champion Northwestern, an eventual 14-13 loser to Boston College in the final.
A a 55-minute rain delay with the Gators trailing 10-9 stalled their momentum against the Wildcats.
“Not to make excuses, but it wasn’t great,” Koury recalled. “We just need to finish games.”
Florida finished off Duke Thursday during a rematch of a 2011 Elite Eight matchup in O’Leary’s second season with a program she help start in 2007.
A 2012 trip to the Final Four appeared to be her big break. A decade later and heading to consecutive Final Fours, O’Leary’s program is at last among the nation’s elite.
A lacrosse outlier from the Deep South now aims to win a championship long reserved for traditional powers. This, during a season with all the makings of a rebuild.
“That honestly motivated us more,” Koury said. “We knew that we had so many people capable of stepping up on this team. We have a great team chemistry, we work really hard on our own time and when we’re at practices.
“Everybody’s just super motivated to reach that next level.”
Edgar Thompson can be reached at egthompson@orlandosentinel.com
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