No. 20 Duke Hosts Top-Ranked North Carolina on Senior Day

Thursday, April 16

Durham, N.C.

5 PM

Duke University

North Carolina

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Photo by: Duke Athletics

No. 20 Duke Hosts Top-Ranked North Carolina on Senior Day

4/15/2026 3:16:00 PM | Women's Lacrosse

Live Stats Watch (ACCN)Game Notes (PDF)

THE OPENING DRAW:

No. 20 Duke concludes the 2026 regular season Thursday evening, hosting top-ranked North Carolina at 5 p.m., on ACC Network.
The Blue Devils will honor their seven-member senior class for its accomplishments and program contributions in a short postgame ceremony.
Eva Pronti paces the Duke offense with 18 goals and a team-high 48 assists for 66 points. Ava Biancardi is the Blue Devils' top goal scorer with 45 markers, pairing that with 11 assists for 56 points on the year. Avery Doran (38g, 17a) and Bella Goodwin (30g, 22a) round out the top four with 55 and 52 points, respectively.
Ellie White has been the Blue Devils' top draw taker this season, winning an ACC best 154 draw controls for an average of 10.27 per game (fifth in the NCAA). Her 154 wins at the draw circle are currently No. 4 on the Duke single-season chart.
Quinn Whitaker has wasted no time making her presence felt in her first season at Duke. Tabbed No. 5 on Inside Lacrosse's Early Season Freshman Impact Rankings, she has started all 15 games for the Blue Devils and is third on the team with 31 goals -- tied for eighth among NCAA freshmen and the third most by a Duke rookie through their first 15 games.
Eva Pronti was named a Nike Lacrosse Midseason Media Third Team All-American by Inside Lacrosse. She has been instrumental to the Duke attack this season, starting all 15 games and leading the squad with 66 points on 18 goals and 48 assists – the latter ranking second in the ACC and fourth in the NCAA.

BY THE NUMBERS:

1 -- Ellie White's ACC ranking in total draw controls (154) and average draw controls per game (10.27)
2 -- Duke players on the 2026 Tewaaraton Award Watch List in Bella Goodwin and Eva Pronti
4 -- Blue Devils ranked in the top 25 of the NCAA individual statistics. Eva Pronti sits fourth in total assists, sixth in assists per game and 24th in total points. Ellie White is fifth in draw controls per game, Avery Doran is 20th in shot percentage and Ava Biancardi is 25th in points
5 -- Rookie Quinn Whitaker's listing on the Inside Lacrosse Early Season Freshman Impact Rankings
5 -- Blue Devil rankings in the top 25 of the NCAA team statistics. Duke is seventh in draw controls per game, 13th in assists per game, 14th in draw control percentage, 20th in points per game and 22nd in shot percentage
6 -- Blue Devils with double-digit goals this season: Ava Biancardi (45), Avery Doran (38), Quinn Whitaker (31), Bella Goodwin (30), Eva Pronti (18) and Sadie Stafford (14)
7 -- Duke players with double figure points this year: Eva Pronti (66), Ava Biancardi (56), Avery Doran (55), Bella Goodwin (52), Quinn Whitaker (36), Sadie Stafford (23) and Caitlin Barrett (10)
19 -- Duke's Week 10 Inside Lacrosse ranking
19 -- Duke's Week 10 USA Lacrosse Magazine Ranking
20 –- Duke's Week 10 IWLCA ranking
48 -- Eva Pronti dimes this season, one away from tying her own single-season assist record set in 2025
106 -- Career assists by Eva Pronti, third all-time on the Duke charts
154 -- Draw controls by Ellie White in 2026, fourth all-time on the Duke single-season chart
254 -- Career draw controls by Ellie White, fourth all-time in Duke lore
373 -- Career victories for head coach Kerstin Kimel, with 369 of those wins coming at Duke

BLUE DEVILS TO CELEBRATE SENIOR CLASS POSTGAME:

Duke will celebrate its senior class in a short ceremony following Thursday's game versus North Carolina.
The Blue Devils' seven-member senior class -- which includes Madison Beale, Ava Biancardi, Madison Drebing, Maddie Holden, Kaylie Mackiewicz, Eva Pronti and Sydney Smith -- will be honored for its accomplishments and contributions to the program.
The group has helped lead Duke to 41 wins and a pair of NCAA Tournament appearances, including the 2025 NCAA Quarterfinals, during their time in Durham.

DUKE IN THE POLLS:

Duke is ranked in multiple top-25 polls. The Blue Devils currently check in at No. 20 in the Intercollegiate Women's Lacrosse Coaches Association (IWLCA) poll. Duke is also ranked 19th by Inside Lacrosse and 19th by USA Lacrosse Magazine.

MILESTONE WATCH:

Head coach Kerstin Kimel is two wins shy of 375 career victories.
Caitlin Barrett is 12 points away from reaching 50 career points.
Avery Doran is nine dimes from 50 career assists.
Bella Goodwin is six tallies away from 100 career goals, three dimes away from 50 career assists and nine points shy of reaching 150 career points as a Blue Devil.
Eva Pronti is nine points from 150 career points and one assist away from matching her own program single-season assist record (49).

DUKE VERSUS NORTH CAROLINA / SCOUTING THE TAR HEELS:

Duke and North Carolina square off for the 35th time this week. The Tar Heels hold a 34-10 lead in the all-time series and are 11-6 in Durham.
UNC, ranked No. 1 in all three women's lacrosse polls, enter the week at 12-1 overall and undefeated in ACC action (9-0).
Chloe Humphrey paces the Tar Heels' stout offense, leading the ACC and the NCAA in both goals (72) and points (102). Humphrey has also dished a team-best 30 assists.
Defensively, Humphrey leads the team in caused turnovers with 18, followed closely behind by Kate Levy (16), GraceAnn Leonard (16) and Addison Pattillo (14). Betty Nelson leads the efforts between the pipes with 51 saves, a .402 save percentage and a 7.76 GAA.

UP NEXT:
Duke prepares for the 2026 ACC Championships, slated for Apr. 22-26 at Memorial Stadium in Charlotte, North Carolina.

For more information on Duke women's lacrosse, follow the Blue Devils on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram by searching "DukeWLAX."

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