No. 4 Duke Surges Past Jacksonville, 3-1

Friday, August 25

Durham, N.C.

7:30 p.m.

Duke University

1-0-0, 0-0-0

Jacksonville

0-1-0, 0-0-0

Jacksonville

Duke

No. 4 Duke Surges Past Jacksonville, 3-1

8/25/2023 10:58:00 PM | Men's Soccer

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DURHAM – The No. 4 Duke men's soccer team rallied for a 3-1 victory over Jacksonville in the 2023 season opener at Koskinen Stadium on Friday night. The Blue Devils used goals from Drew Kerr, Nick Pariano and Ruben Mesalles in the final 15 minutes of play to secure the victory and start the season with a 1-0-0 record. With the win, head coach John Kerr earned his 150th victory as Duke's coach.

HOW IT HAPPENED

Duke started on the attack, taking four of the first five shots of the opening half.
The Blue Devils controlled possession for nearly 70% of the first half and found success with pushing forward into their attacking third but were unable to find the back of the net.
Jacksonville opened the scoring with 90 seconds remaining in the half and took the lead, 1-0, into the locker room.
Duke continued to test the Jacksonville defense at the onset of the second half, creating several chances in the first ten minutes out of the break but were still unable to break through.
Sophomore Drew Kerr broke into the scoresheet for the first time in his Blue Devil career in the 76th minute with a left-footed free kick from just outside the 18-yard box.
Duke claimed its first lead of the match just a few minutes later, converting from the penalty spot in the 80th minute. The Blue Devils extended their advantage in the 87th minute with another left-footed free kick, this time courtesy of Ruben Mesalles.

NOTES

With the victory, head coach John Kerr picked up his 150th career victory at the helm of the Duke program. He is only the second head coach in program history to reach the 150-win threshold, joining former head coach John Rennie.
Drew Kerr scored the first goal of his career in just his 11th appearance for the Blue Devils.
Nick Pariano recorded his seventh goal during his time at Duke and is now an unblemished 3-for-3 from the spot. Ruben Mesalles' goal was the fourth of his career.
Duke out-shot Jacksonville 16-8, including a 12-6 margin in the second half.
The Blue Devils have now won seven straight home openers. Their last non-victory in a home opener was a 1-1 draw against San Diego in 2016.

QUOTES

"We adjusted our mentality at halftime. Tried to play a little bit quicker. They're a good team. They did well. They communicated. They worked really, really hard. And it's hot out here tonight. Impressed with them. That was their first-ever game together with their brand-new coach and a lot of new players. They've got a pretty good future this year if they keep up that kind of work and execution." – head coach John Kerr on Duke's efforts against Jacksonville.
"Yeah, as a dad, I was cheering for him. Very happy for him. First goal as a Duke player. As a coach, delighted to get back in the game. It was an important goal to get us back on our feet and going again. I've seen him do it all through his youth career, so it was nice to see it at this level." – head coach John Kerr on his son, Drew Kerr, scoring his first career goal.
"Obviously it's work, but it's not too difficult with this group because everyone believes in what we can do. I know it got down to 15 minutes or so where we didn't have a goal, but I'd say that the guys it's just in the nature to keep working at it and keep believing. And keep figuring it out. Not just doing the same things over and over again. Really pushing and finding creative ways to break through. Today it was set pieces." – senior captain Nick Pariano on the mindset of the team coming back from a first-half deficit.

UP NEXT

No. 4 Duke returns to action on Sunday afternoon, taking on Furman at Koskinen Stadium. The match is part of a Duke soccer doubleheader, with the women's team playing Wisconsin at noon and the men's team scheduled for a 2:30 kickoff. Fans can purchase one ticket that is good for both games.

To stay up to date with Blue Devils men's soccer, follow the team on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook by searching "DukeMSOC".

#GoDuke