Blue Devils Open NCAA Tournament On Friday With VCU

Nov. 10, 2004

2004 NCAA Tournament
#18 Duke (13-7) vs. VCU (15-6)
Nov. 12, 2004  7:30 PM
Klockner Stadium  Charlottesville, Va.

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Duke Set To Open 2004 NCAA Tournament On Friday...

For the 11th time in school history, the Duke women's soccer team (13-7) will participate in the NCAA Tournament and will kick off action on Friday, Nov. 12 at 7:30 p.m. against Virginia Commonwealth (15-6). The match will be played at Klockner Stadium on the campus of the University of Virginia in Charlottesville, Va.

The winner of the Duke/VCU contest will go up against the winner of the Virginia (16-2-2) versus James Madison (11-7-3) match on Sunday at 1:00 p.m. in the second round. Virginia and JMU will play on Friday at 5:00 p.m.

In The Rankings...

Duke is ranked 19th in the latest Soccer Buzz, 15th in the SoccerTimes.com, 18th in the NSCAA and 20th in the Soccer America polls. Virginia is listed second in the Soccer America, third in the NSCAA, fourth in the SoccerTimes.com and third in the Soccer Buzz rankings. VCU and James Madison are not ranked.

The Series...

Duke and Virginia Commonwealth have never met in women's soccer, while the Blue Devils have never faced James Madison also. In the all-time series against Virginia, it is tied 9-9-5 with the Cavaliers winning earlier this season, 2-1, in Charlottesville, Va.

Duke In the NCAA Tournament...

Duke will be making its 11th appearance in the NCAA Tournament and will try to break a string of seven straight appearances not advancing past the second round. In its first appearance in 1992, Duke advanced to the NCAA Championship game, but lost to North Carolina (9-1).

The last time the Blue Devils have advanced past the second round was in 1994, when Duke was in the Elite Eight, but lost to North Carolina, 3-1.

NCAA Tournament Experience...

After going into the 2003 NCAA Tournament with only six experienced postseason players, the 2004 Duke squad boasts 16 returning players who saw action in last season's two NCAA Tournament contests.

Head Coach Robbie Church will be taking his third Duke team to the NCAA Tournament and fourth overall team to the postseason (Charlotte in 1998). In 1998, Charlotte advanced past the first round by defeating South Carolina, 2-0, but lost to North Carolina, 6-0, in the next round.

McCluskey & Riggs Named All-Tournament...

Blue Devil junior Carolyn Riggs and senior Casey McCluskey were each named to the All-ACC Tournament team on Sunday, after the completion of the championship. Riggs collected three goals in two matches over the weekend, while McCluskey added one goal and one assists. The honor for McCluskey marked the third straight year she has been named to the All-Tournament team.

Carolyn Ford & Casey McCluskey Named Academic All-America...

Duke University women's soccer co-captains Carolyn Ford and Casey McCluskey have been named to the 2004 Academic All-District III University Division Women's Soccer Team, which was selected by the College Sports Information Director's of America (CoSIDA).

Ford was named to the first team and will now move on to the national ballot to be selected for Academic All-America, while McCluskey earned second team accolades.

A product of Bethesda, Md., Ford has started each of the 20 games so far this season on the defensive end for the 11th-ranked Blue Devils. The junior center back has scored two goals and assisted on 10 others for 14 total points. Ford's 10 assists already ranks fourth on the Duke single-season record charts. A Psychology major at Duke, Ford owns a 3.411 grade-point-average.

McCluskey, the 2004 ACC Offensive Player of the Year, earned second team honors this season and has posted 16 goals and seven assists for 39 points so far this season. A senior native of Springfield, Va., McCluskey leads the ACC with nine game-winning goals and ranks near the top in the nation in goals and points per game. She owns 40 career tallies and 94 points in her four years at Duke, which each rank second all-time. McCluskey is a Sociology major and owns a 3.293 grade-point-average.

McCluskey Heading Home For Final Time...

Duke senior Casey McCluskey will head home this weekend for the final time as a collegiate soccer player. A native of Springfield, Va., McCluskey has scored three goals and had one assist against teams from Virginia this season.

Riggs Nets Two-Goal Game...

Junior Carolyn Riggs collected two goals in the loss to North Carolina on Nov. 5, which marked the third straight season she has posted at least one two-goal performance in a game. On the season, Riggs has now scored eight goals and is one away from tying her single season high of nine from last year.

Duke Needs One Victory...

With the next victory for the Blue Devils, it will give Duke 14 victories for the second straight season and ties the single season high for head coach Robbie Church in his four years at Duke. Duke has not won more than 14 games in a season since the 1994 season (17).

The Record Book...

Duke has posted a number of school records during the season-- tied the school record with eight straight wins, had a seven straight shutouts, tied a school-record with nine goals in a game (VT), had 65 assists, had a seven goals in one half (Davidson), had 12 assists in one game (VT), had 30 points in one game (VT) and Rebecca Moros tied an ACC record with four assists against Virginia Tech.