Duke Continues Road Swing at Virginia, Liberty

The Opening Hit

Duke continues its four-game road stretch with games at No. 14 Virginia Friday and No. 12 Liberty. The Blue Devils are 3-0 on the road, winning all three by 3-1 scores.
The Blue Devils' five losses have all come against top-15 teams.
Virginia enters the weekend 1-1 in ACC play and ranked 14th nationally. The Cavaliers are 3-2 at home this season and coming off a 2-1 setback to Old Dominion Sunday.
Liberty is 6-2 overall and recently beat BIG EAST foe UConn, 3-1. The Flames' two losses are against top-five teams Northwestern and Louisville.
Freshman Logan Clouser scored her first career goal and added an assist to help Duke to the 3-1 win at William & Mary. The rookie midfielder has played in all nine games and started twice.
Duke closes its four-game road stretch at North Carolina, Oct. 8.

By the Numbers
8 – Different Blue Devils who have scored a goal this season

0.81 – Virginia goalkeeper Tyler Kennedy's goals against average, second in the ACC and fifth nationally

5.00 – Saves per game average for goalkeeper Piper Hampsch, the most in the ACC and 27th nationally

10.38 – Points per game average for Liberty this season, tops in the BIG EAST and sixth in the nation

51 - Career points for Leah Crouse, ranking 39th in Duke history

3 – Wins needed by Bustin for 300 career victories

4 – Penalty corner goals allowed on 56 penalty corners defended

125 - Career saves for Hampsch, just 11 shy of tying for 15th in program history as just a sophomore

Duke vs. Virginia

Scouting the Cavaliers

Virginia is looking to rebound after a loss to then No. 21 Old Dominion 2-1. The Cavaliers, ranked 14th this week, are 6-3 overall and 1-1 against ACC foes, beating Wake Forest and losing to Louisville.
The Cavaliers are averaging 2.33 goals per game and are led on offense by Amber Ezechiels who has three goals and three assists for nine points. Peyton Tollaksen has the most goals with four, while three other players have three. Nine different Cavaliers have at least one goal.
Defensively, Virginia is allowing just 0.99 goals per game to rank second in the ACC and sixth nationally. In goal, Tyler Kennedy sports a 0.81 goals against average, the fifth lowest in the country. She is averaging only 2.50 saves per game, facing just 52 shots in her eight outings.

Series History

Virginia leads the series 37-22, but Duke won both the outings last season. The Blue Devils shut out the Cavaliers, 2-0, in both games. Duke has won three of the past five, but only has six wins in Charlottesville.

Last Time We Met

Duke defeated Virginia twice during the unique 2020-21 season. The Blue Devils blanked the Cavaliers, 2-0, in both outings.
In the spring matchup in Charlottesville, Darcy Bourne scored twice in the second half with the second coming off a penalty corner. Piper Hampsch was excellent in making seven saves.
In the game in October, Bourne netted a third-minute goal and Eva Nunnink added a second in the 27th to lead Duke to the win. Hampsch made two saves as the Blue Devils held the Cavaliers to just two shots on cage.

Duke vs. Liberty

Scouting the Flames

Liberty jumped up one spot in the rankings to 12th following its win over then-No. 15 UConn. The Flames are 6-2 overall with the two setbacks coming to Northwestern and Louisville.
Liberty is averaging 3.62 goals per game to rank sixth nationally. Jill Bolton is the top scorer with eight goals and 20 points overall. Lizzie Hamlett and Daniella Rhodes have five goals apiece. Liberty averages 17.5 shots per game.
On the defensive side of the field, the Flames are giving up 1.38 goals per game and have two shutouts. In goal, Azul Iritxity Irigoyen has played every minute and sports a .725 save percentage and 1.38 goals against average. She is averaging 3.6 saves per game. The Flames have been excellent in the circle, allowing opponents just 32 penalty corners.

Series History

Liberty and Duke are meeting for just the eighth time. The two teams first faced each other in 2014 and have played each other every year since. Five of the seven games have gone into overtime, including last year's double overtime contest.
Duke is 6-1 versus the Flames with Liberty breaking through with its first victory last spring. The Blue Devils have scored at last three goals in all six victories and tallied four three times.

Last Time We Met

Liberty scored with 3:36 remaining in the second overtime to earn a 3-2 double overtime win in Durham. Hannah Miller and Darcy Bourne scored the goals for the Blue Devils as they took a 2-0 lead in the first four minutes.
The Flames scored the game's final three goals and goalkeeper Irigoyen Iritxity made 12 saves. Piper Hampsch finished with three for Duke.

Duke Notes

About The Blue Devils

Duke is 4-5 overall, 0-2 against ACC foes and ranked 20th in the most recent NFHCA poll. The Blue Devils have split the past two weekends, dropping ACC contests at home before rebounding with matching 3-1 road victories. Nine of Duke's 11 goals this season have come on opponents' home fields.
Duke is averaging 8.1 shots per game and 1.22 goals per game. Senior Leah Crouse leads the team in scoring with three goals and an assist. Overall, eight different players have scored at least one goal this season with three finding the cage for the first time as Blue Devils.
Defensively, Duke is allowing 11.9 shots per game and has dropped its goals against average to under two after allowing only two goals last weekend. The Blue Devils have given up 56 penalty corners, but opponents have only scored directly from a corner four times.
Hampsch has started every game and leads the ACC with a 5.00 saves per game average. She owns a .738 save percentage and a 2.00 goals against average. Grace Brightbill has come off the bench twice to play the second half against Maryland and James Madison. She has one goal allowed and eight saves in her 60 minutes of action.

Is That a Trend We See

Three of Duke's four wins have come on the road this season and all three came by 3-1 victories. The Blue Devils defeated Princeton, 3-1, in their first game away from Durham and then added matching 3-1 triumphs at James Madison and William & Mary the past two Sundays.

Penalty Corner Defense

Duke's penalty corner defense has been stout this season as the Blue Devils have only allowed four goals directly off a corner. Duke gave up a fifth after an initial save from Hampsch on the direct shot off the penalty corner. Overall, Duke opponents have garnered 56 corners in nine games.
Most recently, William & Mary won four penalty corners, and didn't score. After Louisville netted a goal on the first corner of the game, the Blue Devils kept the Cards off the board for the next six.

Penalty Corner Offense

Three of Duke's 11 goals this season have come from penalty corners. The Blue Devils have earned 34 corners this season. Duke's first off the restart was at Princeton to seal the victory over the Tigers. The Blue Devils' lone goal against Wake Forest was from a redirect on a corner, while MaryKate Neff scored straightaway for the game winner at James Madison.
Duke won a season-high nine corners at James Madison and is averaging just over four per game.

Early Bird Gets the Worm

Duke has found itself in early holes in a few of its setbacks this season. The Blue Devils are being outscored 7-1 in the opening 15 minutes with six of those coming in the first 10 minutes. Duke is 1-5 when the opponent scores first and 3-0 when the Blue Devils notch the first tally of the contest.
Duke is being outshot 33-16 in the opening stanza, but holds a 22-14 edge in the second frame.

Leah Passes the Mid Century Mark

With three points at William & Mary last Sunday, senior Leah Crouse became the 41st Blue Devil to register 50 career points. Crouse has 51 points from 18 goals and 15 assists to sit in 39th place on the Duke career chart. She registered 39 points her first two seasons, but missed the second half of the 2020-21 campaign to injury.

Bustin Nears 300

In her 25th season as a head coach, Pam Bustin holds a 297-207 career record. Bustin got her start at Hofstra before spending 13 years at Louisville. She joined the Blue Devil family in 2011 and has amassed a 135-79 mark at the helm of the program. She's the second winningest coach in program history behind Jacki Silar (162).

Up Next

Duke concludes its four-game road stretch at North Carolina next Friday, Oct. 8 at 7 p.m. The Blue Devils return home to host Old Dominion, Sunday, Oct. 10 at 12 p.m.

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Duke Continues Road Swing at Virginia, Liberty

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