No. 7 Duke Cruises Past Bellarmine, 26-7

Saturday, February 1

Durham, N.C.

12 p.m.

Duke University

1-0

Bellarmine

0-1

Bellarmine

Duke University

Benn Johnston celebrates a goal with No. 91 Luke Grayum and No. 20 Jack Gray

Photo by: Duke Athletics

No. 7 Duke Cruises Past Bellarmine, 26-7

2/1/2025 4:01:00 PM | Men's Lacrosse

Box Score Box Score Photo Gallery

DURHAM, N.C.—Seventeen different Blue Devils found the back of the cage and 18 players overall had at least one point as seventh-ranked Duke cruised past Bellarmine, 26-7, in the men's lacrosse season opener Saturday afternoon at Koskinen Stadium.

The Blue Devils outscored the Knights in all four quarters, including leading 14-2 at halftime. Eric Malever led the offense with four goals and two assists in his first game as a Blue Devils. Luke Grayum and Benn Johnston also recorded hat tricks.
Defensively, Duke held Bellarmine without a goal for a span of 20:41 in the first half and then again for 11:56 in the second half.

How it Happened

After getting a couple of possessions under their belt, the Blue Devils grabbed a 1-0 lead on a goal from Johnston. Grayum provided the assist – his first point as a Blue Devil. Senior captain Andrew McAdorey fed Max Sloat two minutes later, giving Duke the 2-0 lead.
Bellarmine got on the board midway through the opening quarter. And then it was all Blue Devils as they went on a 12-1 run to finish the half.
Eight different Blue Devils scored in the run that spanned 14:32, including first collegiate goals for rookies Ben McCarthy and Luke Warrington. Grayum, Malever, Cusolito and Graham Blake all notched their first career scores in a Duke uniform as the Blue Devils headed into the locker room with a 12-goal cushion.
Duke forced the Knights into 11 first-half turnovers and allowed just 15 shots. Patrick Jameison played just 20:30 of the first half, making three saves and allowing one goal.
The Blue Devils extended their lead to 17-2 with a trio of goals from Aidan Maguire, Grayum and Malever in the first 2:42 of the third quarter.
Senior Liam McLane got a goal in the third while freshman Liam Kershis had a goal and an assist in the stanza for his first collegiate points. Longstick midfielder Mac Christmas joined in on the offensive action with a goal and assist as well, putting Duke ahead 23-4 after 45 minutes of action.
Graduate students Pearse Glavin and Ryan Mackenzie and senior Reed Landin put their names on the scoresheet in the first five minutes of the fourth quarter. Duke slowed down the offense in the fourth quarter as Bellarmine got three goals in the final seven minutes to bring it to a 26-7 final score.
Duke played all four goalies in the game, combining for 13 saves. Freshman Buck Cunningham had six saves while Evan Barr made two saves and did not allow a goal. Brodie Taweel made his first career stop in the final 9:57 of the game.
Luke Engelke, Cal Girard and Ben McCarthy split faceoff duties, combing to go 20-of-36. Girard (8-of-12) and McCarthy (6-of-11) both scored goals off the draw. Aidan Maguire, Charlie Johnson and Patrick Jameison all led the defensive charge with two caused turnovers apiece. Luke Engelke had a team-high five ground balls in going 6-of-13 from the dot.

Notes

Freshmen Liam Kershis, Luke Warrington and Ian Dykes all scored their first collegiate goals. Sophomores Mac Christmas and Cal Girard both notched their first career tallies.
Graduate student transfers Eric Malever, Luke Grayum, Graham Blake, Chris Cusolito and Pearse Glavin all recorded their first goals in a Duke uniform.
Junior Charlie Johnson and Kershis earned their first career starts. Johnson had two caused turnovers and one ground ball. Overall, 13 Blue Devils saw the field for the first time in a Duke uniform.
Luke Engelke won a career-high six faceoffs on a career-high 13 attempts.
Duke's 26 goals are the second most in a game under head coach John Danowski while the 19-goal margin of victory is tied for the largest since 2007. It is the 19th time Duke has scored 20-plus goals in a game in 334 games under Danowski.
With four goals and six points, Malever has 51 for his career and 111 points. Grayum, with a hat trick and five points overall, has 76 career goals and 113 career points.