Duke is NCAA College Cup Bound for Second Straight Year

Friday, November 28

Durham, N.C.

4 p.m.

Duke University

17-4-1, 7-3-0

Washington

15-3-7, 8-1-2

Washington

Duke

Photo by: Duke Athletics

Duke is NCAA College Cup Bound for Second Straight Year

11/28/2025 7:03:00 PM | Women's Soccer

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DURHAM, N.C. – The Duke women's soccer team is heading back to the NCAA College Cup for the second year in a row as the second-seeded and 11th-ranked Blue Devils defeated fourth-seeded and 13th-ranked Washington, 3-0, in the quarterfinals of the NCAA Tournament Friday evening on Freeman Field at Koskinen Stadium.

The NCAA College Cup appearance is the sixth in program history (1992, 2011, 2015, 2017 and 2024) and the Blue Devils became the 12th program to take back-to-back teams to the college cup. First year head coach Kieran Hall and the Blue Devils received goals from redshirt junior Kat Rader, senior Devin Lynch and junior Mia Minestrella, while the Duke defense logged its fourth shutout in a row in NCAA action. The Blue Devils remain as the only team in the 2025 NCAA Tournament to not allow a goal.

Duke improved to 17-4-1 overall, while Washington dropped to 15-3-7. The Blue Devils advanced to the NCAA College Cup where they will face Stanford Friday, Dec. 5 in Kansas City, Missouri.

How It Happened

Duke featured the best look at goal early in the match as redshirt junior Kat Rader fired a rocket towards the right side of the goal, but it was blocked by a Husky defender.
Freshman Avery Oder got some open space in the 14th minute and had a good look, but the attempt was blocked as well.
The Blue Devils featured eight corner kicks over the first 13:33 of the match, but couldn't get anything past the Washington defense.
The Huskies had a couple of shot attempts in less than a minute, but were both off target.
Duke nearly got on the board as junior Mia Oliaro had some good footwork and sent a pass towards the back post, but senior Devin Lynch couldn't get a head on it.
The Blue Devils finally got on the board at the 34:50 mark as senior Carina Lageyre and Rader played a perfect give-and-go, which had Rader driving into the box and sending a shot that nipped the near post and went into the goal to give Duke a 1-0 advantage.
At the end of the first half, the Blue Devils held an 11-4 shot advantage with Rader leading the way with four attempts.Duke dominated possession holding the ball for 69.0 percent of the first 45 minutes.
Blue Devil junior Mia Minestrella beat a Washington defender to the ball in the 53rd minute and drove into the box, but her attempt just went wide of the far post.
Duke went ahead 2-0 in the 57th minute as Minestrella and freshman Jocelyn Travers found Lynch up top and blasted a right-footed attempt from 22 yards that bounced under the Husky keeper's hands and into the goal.
Minestrella struck with her sixth goal of the 2025 NCAA Tournament as she finished a breakaway in the 81st minute.Redshirt junior Elle Piper fired a great feed down the right side of the pitch where Oliaro redirected to a streaking Minestrella.A native of Redondo Beach, California, Minestrella drove into the box and finished off the right post and into the back of the net.The goal put Duke ahead, 3-0, with less than 10 minutes remaining.
Duke closed the match with a 21-9 shot advantage as both Rader and Minestrella finished the evening with five each.The Blue Devils held 63.0 percent of the possession for the match.

Notes

Duke scored a goal in the first half for the ninth match in a row and a total of 17 times this season.
The Blue Devils moved to 36-3-1 in NCAA Tournament matches played at home and 4-1 in NCAA Quarterfinal contests in Durham.Duke won its 11th match in a row at home in NCAA action.
Kat Rader has now scored or assisted in 17 of her 21 contests on the year.
Rader totaled her 32nd career goal and 84th career point, which ranks seventh on both Duke career charts.She owns 24 goals, 10 assists and 58 points in 37 matches at home over her career.
Rader collected her 13th career game-winning goal.
On the season, Rader has totaled 36 points to move into eighth on Duke's single-season record book.
Devin Lynch totaled her 13th career goal, sixth on the season and second goal in the NCAA Tournament over her four-year career. She has netted a point in eight out of her last 13 matches.
Mia Minestrella collected her sixth goal of the NCAA Tournament and 18th of the season.
Minestrella has totaled Duke NCAA Tournament records for goals (10) and points (23) over her career.She moved into tied for second on Duke's single-season list for goals (18) and third in points (41).
Minestrella notched her 22nd goal in 37 home matches during her career.She closed the home slated with 28 points and 12 goals at Koskinen Stadium in 2025.
Mia Oliaro moved into a tie for fifth on Duke's single-season assist charts with 12.
Duke has won 25 out of the last 28 home contests.
The Blue Devils won their 13th home match of the year to rank as the third-most in a season at Duke.
Caroline Dysart totaled her 11th shutout of the season to move into a tie for third on Duke's all-time charts, while Duke now owns 12 as a team to rank tied for sixth.

Next Match

Duke will face top-ranked Stanford in the NCAA College Cup Friday, Dec. 5 at CPKC Stadium in Kansas City, Missouri.

Quotes

Duke Head Coach Kieran Hall

Opening Statement:
"I just want to pay tribute to our opponent tonight. I thought obviously Washington, the adversity and the challenges that they faced this season are really challenging. And I thought the way they competed was fierce, and you could feel that right next to the field. And they've had a fantastic season. It was a really difficult game, and we had to work extremely hard for the victory. But I have nothing but respect for what Washington has had to face with Mia [Hamant's passing], and I just want to congratulate them on their fantastic season, everything they've achieved. It's been a special year for them. And then, I'm absolutely ecstatic. So proud of my team, my staff, and all the support staff. I thought we were fantastic this evening. I'm really proud of what we did. We worked for it, we covered every blade of grass, and I just felt like we wanted it tonight, and I'm really pleased that we got the win."

On how the team has achieved four straight shutouts:
"I think there's just a really high level of concentration and competitiveness. The mentality to defend the goal and make it really difficult for the opponent is really clear to see, and you can feel that in training every single day. We know we will score goals, but the fact that we're restricting the opponent to very few chances over the course of the game is really encouraging right now, because that's what it takes to win."

On how the team has been able to control possession:
"I think it's just a collaborative effort. I think whatever we do, it's as a team. We defend as a team, we attack as a team. No doubt, this young lady sitting next to me, Carina [Lageyre], has been immense in midfield. She's the connecting piece between what we do defensively and what we do offensively. And she's incredibly humble. She's going to be embarrassed by the fact that I've called her out, but that's what she's all about. And she's been under appreciated, not just tonight, but over the course of many years now. So, I think what you're seeing is someone that's performing at a really elite level day in and day out."

Redshirt Junior Forward Kat Rader

On scoring the first goal on a pass from Lageyre:
"Some people might know we've played together for a really long time. We're roommates, so I think we are just really in sync out there. And anytime we're near each other, we're always looking to combine and find one another. And I feel like we've done that a few times throughout the season but not always leading to a goal. So, I feel like tonight it was really special to get a goal out of it. And yeah, I think we have a really special connection on the field."

On the chance to play in the College Cup:
"I think for me, personally, I obviously didn't get to play last year in the College Cup, so I think I just have been playing this year with a lot of perspective and bringing joy to the game. And I think our whole team, we love each other so much. And you can kind of see how much joy and energy we play with, and I think that's the biggest thing we're going to try to bring to the College Cup. We're so united, and we want to win with each other so bad and just continue to translate that energy into Kansas."

Senior Midfielder Carina Lageyre

On the importance of getting the first goal:
"We always want to score as early as possible, and I think we put a lot of pressure, just from the first minute. And I think it was just really relieving to get that first one. And we knew they were coming, so I think it was really important. We know Kat can be very clinical in the box, so it was important for us to get that momentum."

On what it means to return to a second straight College Cup:
"It means a lot. It definitely was very heartbreaking last season, and I think we've taken so much from this season. We've had ups and downs, and I think we've really gotten stronger in all aspects of the game. So, I'm really excited to see where we can continue to improve next game."

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

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