Bjornsson Hat Trick Leads No. 8 Duke Past Howard, 7-0

Tuesday, October 24

Durham, N.C.

7 p.m.

Duke University

9-3-2, 3-3-1

Howard

2-10-1, 1-4-0

Howard

Duke

Bjornsson Hat Trick Leads No. 8 Duke Past Howard, 7-0

10/24/2023 10:12:00 PM | Men's Soccer

Box Score Box Score

DURHAM – Duke freshman striker Ulfur Bjornsson registered a hat trick to lead the eighth-ranked Blue Devils to a 7-0 victory over Howard in men's soccer action Tuesday night at Koskinen Stadium.

Duke improves to 9-3-2 overall, while Howard drops to 2-10-1 on the season. Luke Thomas, Forster Ajago and Jai Bean also notched goals for the Blue Devils, while Julian Eyestone garnered the shutout. Amir Daley and Ajago both had two assists.

HOW IT HAPPENED

Duke controlled the run of play throughout the opening 15 minutes, creating a handful of scoring opportunities. Blue Devil forward Forster Ajago had a great look on a cross from the right flank but sent his header over the bar.
The Bison found space down the left side in the 18th minute as Bryson Baker looked for a goal against the run of play. Duke's Antino Lopez did well to track back and block Baker's effort.
Duke continued to put pressure on Howard with Ajago wreaking havoc on the Bison backline. The Blue Devils' patience paid off in the 27th minute, notching goals 50 seconds apart. The first came off the foot of Luke Thomas as Ajago flicked a pass from Ulfur Bjornsson to the senior winger.
Bjornsson provided the top-notch finish 50 seconds later, hitting the left upper 90 for his fourth goal of the season. Ajago was credited with the assist.
Coming out of the locker room with the 2-0 lead, the Blue Devils needed just 3:52 into the second stanza to extend their lead to three. A phenomenal flighted ball out of the back from Lopez fell to the feet of Amir Daley on the right flank. The senior wingback beat a Howard defender to the endline and found Bjornsson in front of the goal for the one-time finish.
Ajago pushed the lead to 4-0 in the 55th minute, tapping in a Thomas pass from the left side of the box.
Bjornsson capped his night with a third tally, beating the Howard goalkeeper on the near post in the 63rd minute. Jai Bean made it 6-0 with a strike from the top of the 18-yard box and a deflection off a Bison defender in the 70th minute pushed it to the 7-0 final score.
Duke outshot the Bison 39-2 for the game. Eyestone finished with two saves for the shutout. Howard goalie Benjamin Hoeslii had nine saves in the 90 minutes of action.

NOTES

Forster Ajago notched his first career multiple assist game. He now has seven for his career with four coming at Dayton and one at Delaware.
Duke extended its shutout streak to 231:41 going back to the 39th minute against NC State.
Julian Eyestone nabbed his second consecutive, and sixth career, clean sheet.
Ulfur Bjornsson registered his first career multiple-goal game with the hat trick. The six points on the night are a career-best for the rookie striker.
The seven goals by the Blue Devils are the most since Duke scored eight in an 8-2 victory over Stetson, Aug. 31, 2014.
Duke's 39 shots are the most by the Blue Devils under head coach John Kerr, surpassing the 35 taken in the 3-2 victory over College of Charleston earlier this season.