Sportswrap: Men's soccer roars to unbeaten start, volleyball gets first ranked win since 2019

Graduate forward Forster Ajago dribbles with the ball during Duke's 6-0 win against Furman Sunday.
Graduate forward Forster Ajago dribbles with the ball during Duke's 6-0 win against Furman Sunday.

Sportswrap is your one-stop shop for everything Duke athletics, where we’ll recap how each of Duke’s sports currently in competition performed over the last week and give a brief look ahead. Here’s our recap for the week of Aug. 21-27.

Men’s soccer

It was a high-scoring weekend for No. 4 Duke, who beat its two opponents of the weekend by a combined score of nine to one. Duke (2-0) opened its season at home Friday, as Jacksonville came to Koskinen Stadium. While the Dolphins scored first, three goals in the final 15 minutes of play helped the home team walk out with a win. The second game of the weekend, Sunday against Furman, saw the Blue Devils scoring one in the first half and five in the second in a dominant 6-0 win. Duke will look to go 3-0 when Wofford comes to Durham Thursday at 7 p.m. -Martin Heintzelman

Women’s soccer

It was a week of improvement for No. 4 Duke, as the Blue Devils were dealt their first loss of the season at the hands of Southern California 3-1 Thursday, before bouncing back to beat Wisconsin 2-1 Sunday. Although defensive mistakes directly led to two of the three goals against the Trojans, Duke (2-1) was able to cut down on its mistakes and hold Wisconsin to only two shots on goal. Sophomore sensation Kat Rader continued to dominate, netting in both contests to become the sixth player in Duke history to score in all three first games of the season. The Blue Devils travel across the country for a tough battle against Stanford Saturday at 10 p.m. -Luke Jovanovic

Volleyball

The Blue Devils competed three times this week, collecting a win and two losses as they traveled to Indiana to compete in the Reamer Club Xtra Special Premier against No. 16 Purdue, Loyola Chicago and No. 18 Creighton. After an exhibition win against Davidson Aug. 19, Duke (1-2) was looking to transfer its preseason success to its out-of-conference competition this weekend. However, after collecting losses against both Purdue and Loyola Chicago Friday and Saturday, respectively, the Blue Devils inched out a 3-2 win against Creighton Sunday. This was the first time Duke has recorded a win over a ranked team since 2019. The Blue Devils come home this week for Thursday and Saturday matchups against Loyola Maryland and West Virginia, respectively. - Anna Newberry

Field Hockey

No. 20 Duke opened up its 2023 season at home, edging Indiana 3-2 for its first win of the year. The Blue Devils (1-0) started off aggressive, outshooting the Hoosiers 9-2 in the first half. Although it only managed one goal in that time, Duke demonstrated its determination from the outset. Coming out of halftime with the game knotted at 1-1, the Blue Devils did not let up and scored two quick goals to take a lead they would not relinquish. Indiana did not go out without a fight, as it scored at the end of the third quarter and off a late-game penalty corner, but a referee review overruled the Hoosiers’ last goal and Duke held on for the final 15 minutes and the win. The Blue Devils next head to College Park, Md., to face Maryland and Northwestern at the ACC/Big 10 Cup. -Suresh Kannoth

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