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Women's Soccer
vs North Carolina
Friday, August 13
Clemson, S.C. (Exh.)
6 p.m.
Duke University
at
Clemson
No. 6 Duke Heads to Clemson for Final Exhibition
8/12/2021 2:17:00 PM | Women's Soccer
DURHAM – The No. 6 Duke women's soccer team wraps up the preseason with a road exhibition match at No. 7 Clemson on Friday, Aug. 13 at 6 p.m.
NEED TO KNOW
DUKE VS. CLEMSON
SCOUTING THE TIGERS
SENIORS SHINE IN FIRST EXHIBITION
ACC PRESEASON PICKS
ACC Women's Soccer Preseason Coaches Poll
Florida State - 167 (11 First-Place Votes)
North Carolina - 155 (2)
Virginia - 148 (1)
Duke - 129
Clemson - 124
Notre Dame - 104
Virginia Tech - 85
Louisville - 77
Wake Forest - 72
NC State - 71
Pitt - 57
Boston College - 45
Syracuse - 24
Miami – 16
TOUGH SLATE
For more information on Duke women's soccer, follow the Blue Devils on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook by searching 'DukeWSOC.'
#GoDuke
NEED TO KNOW
- The upcoming campaign marks the 34th season in program history and the 21st in Durham for head coach Robbie Church, where he has won 256 games and led the Blue Devils to three NCAA College Cup appearances.
- Duke had its first taste of action on Tuesday, Aug. 10, when the Blue Devils bested Georgia, 2-0, in an exhibition at Koskinen Stadium.
- The Blue Devils put together a 12-5-4 record in an unprecedented season that featured the first spring matches in program history. Duke advanced to the quarterfinal round of the NCAA Tournament for the seventh time in the last 10 years, becoming one of just three programs nationally to do so.
- Duke returns 20 letterwinners and nine starters from last season's team. Each of the three team captains -- Tess Boade, Caitlin Cosme and Lily Nabet -- are using their additional year of eligibility granted by the NCAA due to the COVID-19 pandemic and have enrolled in graduate school at Duke.
- The 2020-21 roster is highlighted by five seniors -- Delaney Graham, Marykate McGuire, Mackenzie Pluck, Sydney Simmons and Holly Stam.
- Graham is coming off a sensational, all-around junior season in which she earned All-Atlantic Region honors and was named a CoSIDA Academic All-American.
- She and junior Sophie Jones were named to the Preseason All-ACC Team released Thursday, while the Blue Devils were picked fourth in the Preseason Coaches Poll.
- The Blue Devils were ranked sixth in the United Soccer Coaches preseason poll, marking the sixth consecutive year that Duke will open the season listed among the top 12 teams nationally.
DUKE VS. CLEMSON
- Friday's exhibition match pairs two long-standing ACC rivals as Duke and Clemson have met a total of 29 times in the regular season.
- The Blue Devils hold a 15-13-1 edge in the all-time series and have won each of the last four meetings.
- Duke grinded out a pair of thrilling 1-0 victories over Clemson last season, with the Tigers ranked in the top five of the United Soccer Coaches poll in both matchups.
- The second Duke-Clemson tilt last year came in the ACC Tournament Quarterfinals, when senior Karlie Paschall netted the game-winner in the 51st minute.
- The Blue Devils are 5-7-1 all-time at Historic Riggs Field.
SCOUTING THE TIGERS
- Clemson finished 12-5-2 in the 2020-21 season and posted a 5-3-0 mark in ACC play, earning the No. 4 seed in the conference tournament.
- The Tigers advanced to the quarterfinals of the NCAA Tournament, marking the deepest postseason run of Eddie Radwanski's head coaching tenure.
- Clemson's roster features 16 returners and nine incoming freshmen.
- Sophomore Megan Bornkamp, junior Caroline Conti and junior Maliah Morris led Clemson offensively last season with 17 points each. Bornkamp was a third-team All-America, third-team All-ACC and ACC All-Freshman Team selection.
- Senior goalkeeper Hensley Hancuff started 13-of-14 games last season and made 59 saves (.843 save pct.) while posting a 9-3-2 record.
SENIORS SHINE IN FIRST EXHIBITION
- The 2021 Blue Devils took the pitch for the first time on Tuesday night in an exhibition against Georgia at Koskinen Stadium.
- Duke earned a 2-0 win through 90 minutes of regulation time, before the teams played an additional 20 minutes that saw the Blue Devils net two more goals.
- Duke's senior class filled up the stat sheet, led off by senior Delaney Graham, who opened the scoring in the 64th minute when she buried a feed across the goal box from newcomer Michelle Cooper.
- Fellow senior Holly Stam played the final 27 minutes of regulation and came out to challenge a Georgia breakaway opportunity, stopping the shot to hold the Bulldogs scoreless.
- In the extra period, Marykate McGuire scored inside the box with an assist from Mackenzie Pluck, before McGuire and Pluck were both credited with assists on sophomore Grace Watkins' goal three minutes later.
ACC PRESEASON PICKS
- The Blue Devils were picked fourth in the 2021 ACC Preseason Coaches Poll released Thursday morning.
- Senior Delaney Graham and junior Sophie Jones were tapped to the Preseason All-ACC team, with both looking to follow up an all-conference campaign in 2020-21.
- Duke received 129 votes, while preseason favorite and reigning conference champion Florida State garnered 167 votes.
ACC Women's Soccer Preseason Coaches Poll
Florida State - 167 (11 First-Place Votes)
North Carolina - 155 (2)
Virginia - 148 (1)
Duke - 129
Clemson - 124
Notre Dame - 104
Virginia Tech - 85
Louisville - 77
Wake Forest - 72
NC State - 71
Pitt - 57
Boston College - 45
Syracuse - 24
Miami – 16
TOUGH SLATE
- In addition to playing in the perennially dominant ACC, Duke's 2021 schedule features several nonconference powerhouses.
- The sixth-ranked Blue Devils will face seven teams that were listed in the United Soccer Coaches preseason poll, with three of those matchups coming in August.
- Three of Duke's ranked matchups will be on the road -- at No. 2 North Carolina (Sept. 17), at No. 4 Virginia (Sept. 23) and at No. 18 Vanderbilt (Aug. 29).
- Duke's home matches against ranked teams include No. 1 Florida State (Oct. 24), No. 13 Arkansas (Aug. 19), No. 19 Washington (Aug. 22) and No. 24 Stanford (Sept. 2).
For more information on Duke women's soccer, follow the Blue Devils on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook by searching 'DukeWSOC.'
#GoDuke
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