They say the devil is in the details. But in Durham, the Blue Devils are in the details — and the numbers:
300
Duke women’s soccer head coach Robbie Church is just one win away from a landmark 300 career victories with the program after the third-ranked Blue Devils took home a win at Clemson Thursday evening. Church will retire at the end of this season after 24 years at the helm for the squad from Durham, but his campaign is far from over as the team marches through the start of ACC play. With goals from graduate students Ella Hase and Maggie Graham along with junior Devin Lynch, Duke secured a convincing vicory. Clemson struggled to keep the Blue Devils out of striking range for most of the game, allowing 18 shots while only attempting five of its own. Duke will face SMU in its second ACC game on the calendar Sept. 7 at 4 p.m. -Sarah Muir
10
After more than 10 straight quarters without allowing a goal, No. 5 Duke field hockey fell at Liberty by just one score. Goalie Frederique Wollaert had kept the back of the net untouched through a straight 216:58 of total season play, but the Flames’ Lou Combrinck broke through with a rebounding shot to put her squad on top after the half. Wollaert, a graduate transfer from Penn, was First-Team All-Ivy in 2023 and has been the heart of a formidable Blue Devil defense that has allowed just four regulation goals in seven games so far this season. That lone point was the deciding factor in a defensive battle between the top-15 programs that ended in a 1-0 shutout. Duke will return home this week, taking on Virginia Sept. 27 in Durham. -Muir
111
With starting running back Jaquez Moore dealing with an ankle injury, Duke football has needed to look further down the depth chart for someone to step up. On Saturday against Middle Tennessee State, graduate student Star Thomas continued to be that someone. The New Mexico State transfer torched the Blue Raider defense for 111 rushing yards and two touchdowns, and did so on an efficient 6.5 yards per carry. Thomas has also proved that he can handle the load of a true workhorse back, posting his third consecutive game with 17 or more carries.
Heading into a blockbuster matchup against North Carolina, the Blue Devils will hope to get Moore back into the mix. But if he still can’t go, expect offensive coordinator Jonathan Brewer to continue calling on Thomas. -Diego Greiff
4
Duke volleyball has stumbled out of the blocks this season, and continued its slide with losses to Michigan State and Michigan in this weekend’s Big Ten/ACC Challenge. After losing the first two sets to the Spartans, the Blue Devils clawed back to force the match to 2-2, but were unable to complete the reverse sweep. Saturday’s matchup wasn’t nearly as close, as Duke lost in straight sets to the 10-1 Wolverines. Head coach Jolene Nagel’s squad has now suffered four straight defeats, falling to a lackluster 4-7 record on the season.
After posting an extremely poor .085 hitting percentage in their last outing, the Blue Devils will need to find a more consistent offensive rhythm ahead of their first ACC matchup Friday against Boston College. However, the Eagles are also coming off back-to-back losses, giving Duke an opportunity to get back in the win column. -Greiff
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