After destroying everything in their path to an ACC Title, the Duke Blue Devils lost for the first time in four games. They fell 4-1 to the UCONN Huskies in their first game of the Norman Regional to kick off the 2024 NCAA Tournament.
Duke entered the game as the second seed in the region behind the hosts Oklahoma and was a notable trendy pick to win the regional itself. However, when the dust settled as the Blue Devils kicked off the region on Friday, the Blue Devils found themselves with their backs against the wall and their season on the line.
Staff ace Jonathan Santucci has yet to return, and Duke went with their ACC Championship-winning pitcher Andrew Healy on the mound Friday against the Big East regular season champions.
Healy pitched plenty well enough, but Duke’s bats were ice cold. UCONN starter Braden Cooke went 5.2 IP, giving up just four hits, one earned run and walked two while striking out four.
Healy threw four innings and gave up just one run. Ryan Higgins entered in relief and gave up two runs after a walk, an error on a failed pickoff, and another walk set UCONN up with runners on third and first. A sacrifice bunt moved runners to second, and a two-run single in the top of the sixth by Huskies catcher Ryan Hyde proved too much for the Duke offense to overcome.
Duke mustered eight hits but couldn’t piece it together for more than just one run, which is a stark contrast from how this offense has operated all season l; long.
Duke’s loss sends them to the loser’s bracket. They’ll face the loser of the Oklahoma and Oral Roberts game tomorrow at 2 p.m. central time, and the loser will head home.