Top 10 Match-Up Set for Thursday in Durham

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Match 14
#7 Notre Dame 10-1-3, 4-0-3 ACC) at #1 Duke (12-1-0, 7-0-0 ACC)
Thursday, Oct. 24, 2024 – 7 PM (ET) – ACC Network Extra
Durham, N.C. (Koskinen Stadium)
ACC Network Extra Talent: Dean Linke (PXP), Matt Stradley (Analyst)
 
NEED TO KNOW

• No. 1 Duke women’s soccer will play its final home regular season contest Thursday, Oct. 24 as the Blue Devils (12-1-0, 7-0-0 ACC) host seventh-ranked Notre Dame (10-1-3, 4-0-3) inside Koskinen Stadium at 7 p.m.
• Prior to the match, Duke will honor fifth year senior Leah Freeman, senior Baleigh Bruster and senior Kelly Wilson for senior night.
• Thursday’s contest will be aired live on ACC Network Extra with Dean Linke (PXP) and Matt Stradley (Color) on the call. 
• For the second time in program lore, Duke has opened ACC play with a 7-0 record (2024, 2017). 
• The Blue Devils (7-0) are the only undefeated ACC team remaining in league play.
• Duke leads the ACC with a 3.462 goal margin (scored 45 and allowed 6). 
• On the season, Duke has scored 45 goals by 13 different players. Ten Blue Devils have totaled two or more goals.
• Robbie Church announced on July 22, 2024 he will be retiring at the end of the season and Duke will be promoting associate head coach Kieran Hall to head coach in 2025.  Current assistant coach Carla Overbeck will move to associate head coach in 2025 as well. 

 
STORYLINES/OTHER BLUE DEVIL NOTES

• The Blue Devils’ 12 victories on the season mark the 16th time out of Robbie Church‘s 24 years he has led Duke to double-digit wins. 
• Mia Oliaro has assisted in six consecutive matches.  Overall, Oliaro owns four goals and seven assists during that stretch.
• Maggie Graham has registered nine goals over her last 11 matches, while adding five assists.  She owns a career-high 23 points on the season.  Graham has scored or assisted in nine out of the last 11 contests.
• Robbie Church now owns 119 ACC wins over his career, which are the third-most in league history behind Steve Swanson (150) and Anson Dorrance (244). 
• The 37 goals over the last nine matches for Duke rank first in Blue Devil history — 37 (2024), 36 (2004), 35 (1999).
• Duke holds a +183 advantage in shots and +39 in goals on the season.
• Blue Devil fifth year Ella Hase (T2, 9), sophomore Mia Oliaro (T2, 9) and junior Devin Lynch (T4, 8) all rank in the top five of the ACC in assists.
• Devin Lynch scored or assisted in eight-straight matches prior to the Boston College match, which were also Lynch’s first eight starts of the year.  She totaled four goals and eight assists during that stretch.  
• Duke has scored 45 goals the last 12 matches, while the Blue Devils scored a total of 15 goals a season ago in 16 contests.
• Blue Devil head coach Robbie Church reached the 300-win mark against SMU.  He is the winningest coach in Duke history.
• The last time the Blue Devils dropped a season opener was in 2017.  Duke went on to win 19 straight after the loss and made an appearance in the NCAA College Cup.
• Duke was shutout in the season opener for the first time since 2014, which was also a loss to Ohio State (1-0).
• The last time Duke head coach Robbie Church dealt with a losing season was in 2014 and the next year he led the Blue Devils to the 2015 NCAA College Cup.

 
THE SERIES WITH NOTRE DAME

• Duke and Notre Dame will meet for the 22nd time in program history with the Irish leading the series, 10-8-3.
• In matches played in Durham, the series is tied, 3-3-1, but Notre Dame came-from-behind last season at Koskinen Stadium and notched a 2-1 victory on Sept. 21, 2023. Kat Rader scored in the 14th minute, but the Irish posted two goals over the final five minutes to get the win.
• Over the last three meetings, the four goals scored by Duke came by Rader or Michelle Cooper.
• Blue Devil head coach Robbie Church features a 5-4-2 ledger against the Irish.

 
SCOUTING THE FIGHTING IRISH

• Notre Dame enters Thursday’s match with a 10-3-1 overall and 4-0-3 conference mark.
• The Irish have been led by freshman Izzy Engle with 11 goals, while Lily Joseph (6) and Ellie Hodsden (8) have also combined for 14 tallies. 
• On the year, Notre Dame is 5-0-2 on the road.
• The Irish have not dropped a match since the season opener at Michigan State (2-1).

 
HEY, I KNOW YOU!

• Duke junior Farrah Walters attended the same high school (Chaparral) as Notre Dame’s Sophia Fisher.  The duo are good friends and played soccer growing up together.  Walters is also friends with KiKi Turner of the Irish as they played together as well.  All three are from Scottsdale, Ariz.

 
AGAINST RANKED FOES

• So far this season, Duke owns a 4-0 ledger against ranked opponents, including two wins against top 10 foes (Stanford and North Carolina).
• Maggie Graham owns four goals and three assists for 11 points in those contests.  Devin Lynch has tallied two goals and three assists for seven points.
• The Blue Devils have outscored the opponents, 10-3 and hold an 35-9 shot advantage.

 
TOP OFFENSIVE/DEFENSIVE TEAMS MEET

• When Duke and Notre Dame meet on Thursday, it will pit two of the top offensive and defensive teams in the nation on the field together.
• Duke ranks third in goal differential (39) and Notre Dame is 10th (31).  The Blue Devils are second in scoring offense (3.46) and the Irish are seventh (2.71). 
• On the year, Duke has allowed only six goals, while Notre Dame has allowed seven to rank tied for second and tied for fourth, respectively, in the nation.

 
WINGBACKS SHINING

• Duke wingbacks Ella Hase and Mia Oliaro are shining in their role this season.  Since moving to those positions against Nebraska in the second match of the season, they have combined for seven goals and 18 assists.
• Hase has totaled two goals and nine assists on the left side of the pitch, while Oliaro owns five goals and nine assists on the right side. 
• The duo has also helped lead Duke to seven shutouts on the defensive end and allowed an ACC-best six goals. 

 
MORE HONORS FOR OLIARO

• Duke sophomore Mia Oliaro was rewarded Tuesday for her efforts this past week as the wingback was named to the TopDrawerSoccer National Team of the Week. 
• She collected a career-high six points against Boston College as she totaled her first collegiate brace along with two assists. 
• Oliaro’s six points Saturday are tied for the fifth-most in program history for a single game and tied for second in an ACC regular season match at Duke.  She scored the second and sixth goals of the contest, while assisting on the game-winning tally and the third goal.  She has now assisted in six straight matches on the season, which is the second-longest streak for Duke this season.
• On the year, Oliaro has totaled five goals and a tied for team-best nine assists for 19 points, which ranks second on the squad.  Her two game-winning goals rank second as well for the Blue Devils. Of her 31 shots on the season, 20 have come on goal.   

 
CHALLENGING SLATE AHEAD

• Duke has three straight top 10 opponents remaining on the schedule with two on the road.  The last time the Blue Devils faced three consecutive top 10 opponents in the regular season was in 2011 — No. 5 Boston College (W, 1-0), No. 9 North Carolina (L, 1-0), No. 4 Wake Forest (W, 2-0).  All three matches were on the road.
• Overall, Duke as faced three straight top 10 opponents only three times in program history (1999, 2011, 2015). 
• Of the final six regular season matches, five of those are against nationally-ranked foes — Wake Forest (2), North Carolina (4), Stanford (7 when played), Notre Dame (7) and California (17 when played). 
• Four of the six contests are on the road as well. 

 
TOP WINNING STREAKS

• Duke owns a 12-match winning streak on the season, which is the second-longest in Duke history.
• The top streak was in 2017 when the Blue Devils totaled a 19-match streak. 

 
Top Winning Streaks in duke history
19 –        Aug. 20 – Nov. 3, 2017
12 –        Aug. 22 – Present
8 –           Aug. 26 – Sept. 22, 2000 (first 8)
                Sept. 10 – Oct. 3, 2004
 
GRAHAM BREAKS OUT AS GRADUATE

• After scoring a career-high four goals as a junior and only eight goals over her first four seasons, graduate student Maggie Graham has come alive as a scorer in her final season in Durham.
• Graham owns a team-high nine goals and five assists for 23 points. 
• Her previous high for points in a season was 14 in 2022 as a junior.
• Graham played in her 92nd career match against Boston College to move into a tie for 10th at Duke.
• Her three game-winning goals are a career high as well and now owns six over her Blue Devil career to rank tied for 20th. 

 
LYNCH SCORING AS JUNIOR

• After not scoring her first two years at Duke, junior Devin Lynch has tallied five goals over the first 13 matches in 2024.
• The only other Blue Devils to be scoreless their first two seasons and then score four or more goals as a junior were Kelly Hathorn (6 in 2007), Heidi Hollenbeck (4 in 2004) and Molly Lester (4 in 2010).
• Lynch scored or assisted in eight straight matches prior to the Boston College match, which was the second-longest streak in program history. It was also the longest streak in the ACC this season.
• Since entering the starting lineup against ETSU on Sept. 8, Lynch has totaled four goals and assisted in eight out of the last nine contests.

 
CONSECUTIVE GAMES WITH A GOAL or assist
9 –           Casey McCluskey (2004)
8 –           Devin Lynch (2024)
7 –           Kayle McCoy (2018)
6 –           Mia Oliaro (2024)
                Michelle Cooper (2021)
                Ella Stevens (2019)
                Kelly Cobb (2011)
                Andi Melde (1997)
                Samantha Baggett (1987)
 
QUICK START IN ACC PLAY

• Duke has jumped out to a 7-0 start in ACC play for only the second time in Blue Devil history (2024, 2017). 
• The Blue Devils posted a 10-0-0 ledger in 2017 to win the ACC regular season title.
• Duke is averaging an ACC-best 3.571 goals a game in ACC play scoring 18 in six matches.
• The Blue Devils’ five goals allowed is tied for second behind North Carolina (3). 
• Duke is averaging 11.9 points a game in ACC play with 33 assists as well. The Blue Devils’ 19.0 shots a game in ACC play is second behind Notre Dame (19.0).
• Mia Oliaro ranks first with seven assists, while Devin Lynch and Ella Hase rank second with six assists.  Maggie Graham tied for fifth with four.  
• Graham is tied for first with six goals and first with 16 points.  Graham leads the league with a 2.29 points per game average, while Oliaro is tied for second (2.14), Lynch is fifth (1.71) and Mia Minestrella (1.43) is ninth. 

 
BACK HOME AT KOSKINEN

• At home in 2024, the Blue Devils feature an 8-0 ledger and have outscored opponents by a 33-2 ledger.  Duke has also outshot foes, 174-41, in those matches.
• Maggie Graham, Mia Oliaro and Mia Minestrella own a team-high five goals in Durham, while Devin Lynch has totaled three goals and five assists. 
• Ella Hase has eight assists in eight home contests.
• Duke is averaging 4.13 goals per game.
• The Blue Devils have scored 33 goals at home, which is the ninth-most at home in a single season.  The record is 40 in 2017. 

 
IMPRESSIVE SCORING

• For the first time in program history, Duke scored three or more goals in seven straight matches, prior to registering two at California. 
• Duke has totaled two or more goals in nine consecutive matches to rank tied for first nationally along with Utah Valley.  

 
HIGH-SCORING OFFENSE

• Since the season opener, the Blue Devils have tallied 45 goals in 12 matches. 
• Duke’s offense has produced a season-high goals allowed by five opponents — UNC Wilmington (4), East Tennessee State (5), Virginia (3), Stanford (4), Boston College (7).
• The 45 goals over the first 13 matches ranks first in program history — 45 (2024), 43 (1990), 40 (2012).
• The 37 goals over the last nine matches for Duke rank first in Blue Devil history — 37 (2024), 36 (2004), 35 (1999).
• Duke ranks first in the ACC in points per game with a 11.2, with Florida State (10.6) second. The Blue Devils’ 3.5 goals per game average and 4.2 assists per game ranks first in the league. 
• For the first time in Duke history, the Blue Devils have scored two or more goals in the first seven ACC matches of the season. 

 
STRONG DEFENSE

• Over 13 matches, Duke has allowed only six goals.
• The Blue Devils had totaled five straight shutouts prior to allowing a first half goal against Clemson.  Duke’s scoreless streak of 511:94 ranked as the fifth-longest in program history (since 2002).
• Duke’s six goals allowed ranks first in the ACC with Notre Dame (7) second.  The Blue Devils rank tied for second nationally with six goals allowed on the year.
• The six goals allowed over the first 13 games to open a season is tied for the third-fewest in program history — 5 (2005, 2011), 6 (2024).

 
NOTING THE BLUE DEVILS

• Robbie Church now owns 119 ACC wins over his career, which is the third-most in league history behind Steve Swanson (150) and Anson Dorrance (244). 
• Leah Freeman leads the ACC with an .846 save percentage and a .506 goals-against average. 
• Katie Groff totaled her second goal of the season against Louisville and has registered two goals in each of the last four years. 
• Duke finished the month of September with a 5-0 ledger, which marked only the second undefeated month of September in program history (2017 – 8-0).

 
MIA squared

• The Duke duo of Mia Oliaro and Mia Minestrella continue to be one of the top tandems nationally this season as they have combined to notch 12 goals and 12 assists.
• Mia squared have a knack for helping each score as well as Oliaro has assisted on four of Minestrella’s seven goals (Nebraska, SMU, Louisville and Boston College)
• Minestrella assisted one of Oliaro’s goals against the Eagles as well on Oct. 19.
• All seven of Minestrella’s goals have come off the bench for the sophomore. 
• The duo are also roommates this year.