Upcoming Event: Women's Soccer versus #19 North Carolina on October 12, 2025 at 1 p.m.
Women's Soccer
vs #19 North Carolina
Saturday, March 6
Wilmington, N.C.
2 p.m.
Duke University
at
UNCW
No. 5 Duke Kicks Off Spring Season Saturday at UNCW
3/5/2021 2:32:00 PM | Women's Soccer
2020-21 Schedule | Twitter | Live Stats | Watch
Match 14
No. 5 Duke (7-4-2) at UNCW (2-1-0)
Saturday, March 6, 2021 | 2 p.m.
Wilmington, N.C. – UNCW Soccer Stadium
NEED TO KNOW
DUKE VS. UNCW
Duke faces UNCW for the third time in program history and the first time since Sept. 1, 2017.
Each of the previous two matches took place at Koskinen Stadium, with the Blue Devils winning by scores of 3-0 and 1-0, respectively.
Former Duke standout Imani Dorsey netted the game's only goal in the 2017 match, which also marked Robbie Church's 200th win at Duke.
SCOUTING THE SEAHAWKS
After not competing during the 2020 fall season due to COVID-19 precautions, the UNCW women's soccer team resumed play in February and has accrued a 2-1-0 record in three matches.
The Seahawks fell at NC State in overtime on Feb. 10, before outscoring their next two opponents 8-1 to pick up back-to-back wins. They earned their first victory in over a year at Charlotte on Feb. 21 with a 3-1 decision, and defeated Coastal Carolina 5-0 in their home opener on Feb. 28.
Senior midfielder Audrey Harding leads the team with three goals and seven points. Goalkeepers Blair Barefoot and Anna Johnston have split time on the back line, with Barefoot logging 140 minutes in goal and Johnston yielding zero goals in 135 minutes of play.
"When we scheduled it, I knew it was a tough matchup," said head coach Robbie Church. "Chris Neal does a wonderful job with his program there in Wilmington. He did the same thing in Elon and Pfeiffer and every place that he's been. He's done a wonderful job with their program. They're going to be a very organized team. They're going to be playing on their field. We're coming in as a highly ranked team, so they're going to be very motivated. It's not going to be an easy game, and we knew it when we scheduled it. We're going to have to be at our best.
PROGRAM'S FIRST MARCH GAME
Saturday's game marks the first in program history played in the month of March. The NCAA Tournament's move from the fall of 2020 to the spring of 2021 led to the Blue Devils scheduling a five-game slate over the next month.
The Blue Devils have never played a game past December. The national championship match between Duke and Penn State on Dec. 6, 2015 was previously the latest the team had ever taken the pitch in a season.
The 125 days since Duke's last regular season game (Nov. 1 at Miami) marks the longest gap within a season in program history.
HEY, I KNOW YOU!
Duke freshman Katie Groff and UNCW sophomore Malina Pardo played together at Leesville Road High School in Raleigh, N.C. Groff was also teammates with Seahawks sophomore Hannah Arostegui on the N.C. Courage Academy Team.
JONES RACKS UP PRESEASON HONORS
Sophomore Sophie Jones enters the spring season with national recognition, as the Menlo Park, Calif., native was tapped to the MAC Hermann Trophy Watch List.
Awarded annually to the most outstanding player in the country, the trophy watch list is compiled by members of the United Soccer Coaches Division I All-America committees. Jones is one of seven players from an ACC team named to the watch list.
Jones was also added to the TopDrawerSoccer.com Women's Preseason best XI Second Team, and checked in at No. 16 on TopDrawer's National Top 100 list. She was joined by teammates Delaney Graham (No. 53) and Taylor Mitchell (No. 70) on the player rankings.
Jones capped off the fall season with All-ACC First Team and ACC All-Tournament honors.
BLUE DEVILS RANKED NO. 5 IN USCA SPRING POLL
The United Soccer Coaches Association released the first Division I poll of 2021 on Tuesday, with Duke ranked No. 5 in the nation heading into the spring campaign.
The Blue Devils have been ranked in the top seven nationally in seven of the last eight polls dating back to Sept. 22. Duke is one of five ACC teams entering the spring with a top-10 ranking, joining No. 1 Florida State, No. 2 North Carolina, No. 8 Virginia and No. 9 Clemson.
NOTING DUKE
SPREADING OUT THE OFFENSE
On the season, Duke features six different players who have scored at least two goals -- Olivia Migli (4), Tess Boade (3), Caitlin Cosme (3), Marykate McGuire (2), Delaney Graham (2) and Maggie Graham (2).
BLUE DEVILS LOOKING FORWARD TO SPRING OPPORTUNITY
"I think we had a really good fall," said head coach Robbie Church. "Obviously, we all know how different it was in so many different aspects. I thought our girls handled it so well on the field with our play and how we sacrificed for each other off the field so we could play. What they did in the classroom, too – we had a phenomenal semester there. I thought we did a lot in the fall and we're excited about adding on to it. It's been a really good five weeks as a preseason. I really don't know if I can remember in our program consistently how well we've done, how hard we've trained, how focused we've been and I'm excited to take all of that work and put it into the game. I think that the players have really bought in to what we're doing."
"It's crazy to think we've been at this for nearly eight months now given our season is usually condensed into only a few months," said senior team captain Tess Boade. "After a short break from games and focusing on training, we're feeling sharp and ready. We laid some great groundwork in the fall and it will be important to continue to build on this. Saturday begins the second leg of our campaign to win a national championship and we couldn't be more excited."
#GoDuke
Match 14
No. 5 Duke (7-4-2) at UNCW (2-1-0)
Saturday, March 6, 2021 | 2 p.m.
Wilmington, N.C. – UNCW Soccer Stadium
NEED TO KNOW
- Duke begins a five-game spring slate when it travels to UNCW Saturday at 2 p.m.
- 125 days will have passed since the last time Duke played a regular season game (Nov. 1, 2020), marking the longest gap between regular season contests in the same season in program history.
- The Blue Devils last took the pitch in the ACC Tournament semifinals -- a 4-0 loss to top-seeded Florida State on Nov. 13 in Cary, N.C.
- Saturday marks the first match in program history played in the month of March.
- The Blue Devils welcomed the fifth-ranked recruiting class to Durham this season, marking the ninth-straight year head coach Robbie Church has brought in a top-10 signing class.
- Freshman Olivia Migli's four goals lead the team and are tied for first among all ACC freshmen.
DUKE VS. UNCW
Duke faces UNCW for the third time in program history and the first time since Sept. 1, 2017.
Each of the previous two matches took place at Koskinen Stadium, with the Blue Devils winning by scores of 3-0 and 1-0, respectively.
Former Duke standout Imani Dorsey netted the game's only goal in the 2017 match, which also marked Robbie Church's 200th win at Duke.
SCOUTING THE SEAHAWKS
After not competing during the 2020 fall season due to COVID-19 precautions, the UNCW women's soccer team resumed play in February and has accrued a 2-1-0 record in three matches.
The Seahawks fell at NC State in overtime on Feb. 10, before outscoring their next two opponents 8-1 to pick up back-to-back wins. They earned their first victory in over a year at Charlotte on Feb. 21 with a 3-1 decision, and defeated Coastal Carolina 5-0 in their home opener on Feb. 28.
Senior midfielder Audrey Harding leads the team with three goals and seven points. Goalkeepers Blair Barefoot and Anna Johnston have split time on the back line, with Barefoot logging 140 minutes in goal and Johnston yielding zero goals in 135 minutes of play.
"When we scheduled it, I knew it was a tough matchup," said head coach Robbie Church. "Chris Neal does a wonderful job with his program there in Wilmington. He did the same thing in Elon and Pfeiffer and every place that he's been. He's done a wonderful job with their program. They're going to be a very organized team. They're going to be playing on their field. We're coming in as a highly ranked team, so they're going to be very motivated. It's not going to be an easy game, and we knew it when we scheduled it. We're going to have to be at our best.
PROGRAM'S FIRST MARCH GAME
Saturday's game marks the first in program history played in the month of March. The NCAA Tournament's move from the fall of 2020 to the spring of 2021 led to the Blue Devils scheduling a five-game slate over the next month.
The Blue Devils have never played a game past December. The national championship match between Duke and Penn State on Dec. 6, 2015 was previously the latest the team had ever taken the pitch in a season.
The 125 days since Duke's last regular season game (Nov. 1 at Miami) marks the longest gap within a season in program history.
HEY, I KNOW YOU!
Duke freshman Katie Groff and UNCW sophomore Malina Pardo played together at Leesville Road High School in Raleigh, N.C. Groff was also teammates with Seahawks sophomore Hannah Arostegui on the N.C. Courage Academy Team.
JONES RACKS UP PRESEASON HONORS
Sophomore Sophie Jones enters the spring season with national recognition, as the Menlo Park, Calif., native was tapped to the MAC Hermann Trophy Watch List.
Awarded annually to the most outstanding player in the country, the trophy watch list is compiled by members of the United Soccer Coaches Division I All-America committees. Jones is one of seven players from an ACC team named to the watch list.
Jones was also added to the TopDrawerSoccer.com Women's Preseason best XI Second Team, and checked in at No. 16 on TopDrawer's National Top 100 list. She was joined by teammates Delaney Graham (No. 53) and Taylor Mitchell (No. 70) on the player rankings.
Jones capped off the fall season with All-ACC First Team and ACC All-Tournament honors.
BLUE DEVILS RANKED NO. 5 IN USCA SPRING POLL
The United Soccer Coaches Association released the first Division I poll of 2021 on Tuesday, with Duke ranked No. 5 in the nation heading into the spring campaign.
The Blue Devils have been ranked in the top seven nationally in seven of the last eight polls dating back to Sept. 22. Duke is one of five ACC teams entering the spring with a top-10 ranking, joining No. 1 Florida State, No. 2 North Carolina, No. 8 Virginia and No. 9 Clemson.
NOTING DUKE
- The Blue Devils are 7-0-0 on the season when scoring first and 0-4-1 when the opponent scores first.
- Duke is 4-0 when leading at the half.
- Duke's four losses on the season have come to No. 1 Florida State and No. 2 North Carolina, dropping a pair of matches against each opponent.
- After scoring a combined 17 goals in 2019, Duke juniors Marykate McGuire and Mackenzie Pluck have been limited to only two goals between them so far in 2020.
- With her 11th career goal at Miami on Nov. 1, senior Tess Boade now owns 30 career points in four years at Duke.
- Senior Taylor Mitchell has played 7,054 minutes over four years and ranks 10th in all-time minutes played at Duke.
- Fellow senior defender Caitlin Cosme played 300 minutes in eight matches her first two seasons at Duke, but has played 33 matches and 3,003 minutes over the last two years.
- In a fall season that was shortened due to COVID-19, sophomore goalkeeper Ruthie Jones still logged five shutouts, which ranks third in the ACC.
SPREADING OUT THE OFFENSE
On the season, Duke features six different players who have scored at least two goals -- Olivia Migli (4), Tess Boade (3), Caitlin Cosme (3), Marykate McGuire (2), Delaney Graham (2) and Maggie Graham (2).
BLUE DEVILS LOOKING FORWARD TO SPRING OPPORTUNITY
"I think we had a really good fall," said head coach Robbie Church. "Obviously, we all know how different it was in so many different aspects. I thought our girls handled it so well on the field with our play and how we sacrificed for each other off the field so we could play. What they did in the classroom, too – we had a phenomenal semester there. I thought we did a lot in the fall and we're excited about adding on to it. It's been a really good five weeks as a preseason. I really don't know if I can remember in our program consistently how well we've done, how hard we've trained, how focused we've been and I'm excited to take all of that work and put it into the game. I think that the players have really bought in to what we're doing."
"It's crazy to think we've been at this for nearly eight months now given our season is usually condensed into only a few months," said senior team captain Tess Boade. "After a short break from games and focusing on training, we're feeling sharp and ready. We laid some great groundwork in the fall and it will be important to continue to build on this. Saturday begins the second leg of our campaign to win a national championship and we couldn't be more excited."
#GoDuke
Players Mentioned
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