Blue Devils Travel for Exhibition at No. 24 High Point

DURHAM – Following a successful opening week of exhibitions, the Duke men's soccer program is set for another against a top-25 opponent, as they travel to No. 24 High Point to play on Tuesday, Aug. 17 at 7 p.m.

The game will be the final road exhibition, before coming home to host NC State on Friday, Aug. 20 at 7 p.m. Both games will serve as final tune-ups for the 2021 home opener against Liberty on Aug. 27 at 7:30 p.m.

Quick Facts

The Blue Devils head to High Point after securing a 1-1 draw at No. 25 Coastal Carolina and a 4-2 victory at UNC-Wilmington.
Head Coach John Kerr enters his 14th season at the helm of the program. Kerr has compiled a career record of 203-155-45 and 122-96-32 at Duke.
The Blue Devils remain a very young group, with 17 players as either a freshman or sophomore, versus eight players as a junior or older.
The Blue Devils have started the exhibition slate at 1-0-1 and are looking to improve on their regular season record of 4-10-3 from last season, returning six of their 10 top point scorers.
Duke has had at least one All-ACC honoree in every season since 1976, including every season of Kerr's tenure.

Opponent History

The Blue Devils are 13-9-2 against the Panthers, with the last regular season meeting coming on Oct. 22, 2019, where the Panthers earned a 1-0 victory.
Duke is seeking its first win against High Point since a 3-2 OT victory on Sep. 1, 2017.

What to Watch For

The freshman class made their voices heard in the opening exhibitions, as Felix Barajas and Ruben Mesalles (twice) scored against UNC-Wilmington in the 4-2 win. Barajas and Mesalles became the first freshmen to score in an exhibition game for Duke since 2014, when Markus Fjortøft and Jeremy Ebobisse scored against Charleston.
After a breakout freshman season, sophomore Thorleifur Ulfarsson is off to a quick start in the preseason. Ulfarsson scored the lone goal against Coastal Carolina, while adding an assist against UNC-Wilmington.
The defense is finding its stride, after holding UNC-Wilmington without a shot on goal for just over 65 minutes in Saturday's win. The Blue Devils held the Seahawks to just three shots on goal the entire game.
The Blue Devils are looking to win multiple games during the preseason for the first time since 2014.