Vanessa De Jesus and Duke mounted a late fourth-quarter rally but ultimately came up short, falling to Florida State, 59-56, Friday morning (Manila time) at Durham, North Carolina.
De Jesus got six points on 2-of-8 shooting with two rebounds and two assists.
A three-point play by the Filipino-American guard gave the Blue Devils a 39-36 edge heading into the fourth.
Florida State led 52-44 at the under-five media timeout after scoring 15 of the first 20 points in the quarter and held a 10-point apex with just under four minutes remaining. Duke refused to go quietly and launched an 11-2 run to get back into the game.
Senior Onome Akinbode-James scored inside, then Duke cashed in three-straight triples to pull within one, 57-56. Lexi Gordon banged home a trifecta from the top of the key and Goodchild followed with a pair of her own – one from the right-wing and the other in the deep left corner.
The Blue Devils remained within striking distance and had multiple chances to tie or win the game late following back-to-back split trips at the charity stripe by the Seminoles.
Unfortunately, Shayeann Day-Wilson’s and Miela Goodchild’s attempts fell short, and a late turnover allowed the visitors to hang on for the win.
Florida State went up to 6-6 in ACC competition and 12-10 overall while dropping Duke to 6-7 in conference play, 15-8 for the season.
Morgan Jones led Florida State with 13 points
Goodchild led the scoring efforts for Duke with 13 points while Celeste Taylor paced the Blue Devils on the glass with eight rebounds and Day-Wilson finished with three assists.
Duke looks to bounce back when it hosts NC State on Monday (Manila time).
