Mia Oliaro barely glanced before finding Nicky Chico with a quick pass. Chico tapped it right back to Oliaro, who, in one touch, threaded a perfectly timed through ball to Maggie Graham, sprinting up the right wing. Graham moved the ball into the final third, drawing defenders toward her as she made a sharp cut back and passed the ball to Farrah Walters in the box. Without hesitation, Walters slid a one-timed ball across the goal frame, which deflected off the Notre Dame goalkeeper right into the path of Ella Hase, who sprinted in from the far side, trusting the ball would meet her there. With a calm, single touch, Hase finished the play — a seamless end to a perfectly orchestrated sequence.
To score that goal, the Duke women’s soccer team displayed a chemistry that seemed instinctive. Each player involved knew exactly where her teammate would be and trusted that she would develop the play. There was no hesitation, no search for individual glory, just a shared commitment to execution. This was Blue Devil soccer at its best.
For the first time in 32 years and the second time ever, Duke is ranked No. 1 in the country. Boasting a 14-1-1 record so far, this season marks a turnaround from last season's losing record of 6-7-3. The Blue Devils are even the ACC regular season champions.
This transformation was no accident; the Blue Devils have deliberately cultivated a culture of teamwork and togetherness that pumps the heart of this season’s success.
“We have that collective buy-in, we all just believe in one another as soccer players and as people, we just want to perform for each other. So I think that collective competence has shown through,” junior Carina Lageyre told The Chronicle.
Spring sessions
The 2023 season ended in heartbreak, with Duke failing to qualify for the ACC or NCAA tournament for the first time in nine years. For a program of the Blue Devils’ caliber, missing out on the postseason was devastating. It also lit a fire under both the players and coaches.
“We had, for our standards, a disappointing year in the fall of 2023, not making the NCAA tournaments,” head coach Robbie Church said. “And we had a lot of players returning. So we knew we had players that were going to be big parts of the team in 2024.”
The foundation of Duke’s 2024 success was laid in the spring, where a new emphasis was placed on leadership, cohesion and communication. It was crucial for every player on the team to understand and be motivated to uphold the Blue Devil standards the coming year. So, every Wednesday afternoon, the team dedicated time off the pitch in classroom sessions to meet and reflect. Church’s squad worked through the Jeff Janssen sports leadership series, dissecting core principles and connecting them to their own experiences both on and off the field.
For graduate captain Chico, the highlight of each of these sessions was the teammate shoutouts at the end. This created a space for players to recognize one another’s strengths that week, serving as a confidence and morale builder and allowing the girls to feel appreciated.
“Sometimes, you’re just having a rough week or a tough month, and it’s nice to hear your teammates call out what you’re doing right,” Chico said. “It lets you know your efforts matter.”
These sessions became evenings the team looked forward to each week. Initially, they felt more like another task, extra homework they had on top of their busy student-athlete schedules. Soon enough, however, players found themselves lingering afterward, wanting to keep the conversation going.
“In the beginning, we were all like, 'Oh, this is going to be something we have to do'… but fast forward to it, you see us staying there late wanting to just keep talking because it really is important,” Chico said. “What you do on the field is important, but if your team culture isn't like ours this year, it wouldn't have gotten us anywhere.”
Leading as one
One of the most critical factors in building this culture of togetherness has been leadership.
“We have a leadership group of five players, and they have done really well,” Church said. “Most of the stuff has been policed within our team and within our program at this point, and I think it just goes back to how important leadership is, not only on the field, but off the field.”
Duke’s roster has players ranging from freshmen to fifth-years, and integrating these groups could have been a challenge, but the team captains — Chico, Graham and Kelly Wilson — and other upperclassmen have not allowed age gaps to dominate the culture. The team spends countless hours together; they go to dinners, they watch movies, they just hang out. This consistent, unstructured time has ensured a strong sense of belonging and friendship that is the foundation of their chemistry.
“Ensuring that everyone on the team is spending quality time with one another and making sure that there's no divide amongst the classes is something that we've really harped on this season,” Wilson said. “I think that whether you're a freshman or fifth year you're just as close, regardless of your age. And that's been really important in cultivating our team culture this season.”
This off-field chemistry has transitioned to on-field success. The Blue Devils house an immense amount of individual talent, but no singular player dominates the stat sheet. The team's 53 goals are spread among 14 players, with Graham netting 10, Mia Minestrella eight and Oliaro seven. The balance speaks to Duke’s commitment to selfless soccer, where making the extra pass to find a better scoring opportunity takes precedence over personal glory.
“There's no name on the back of the jersey. It's a name on the front and it's Duke, and that's what we stress all the time," Church said. "That is the most important thing, and this group has sacrificed for that.”
Oliaro, a sophomore, transferred from North Carolina in the spring of 2023 and quickly felt at home in the close-knit squad.
“I came in the spring and I just felt like I was welcomed immediately into what felt like a family,” the Chapel Hill native said. “Every single person was constantly reaching out and supporting me in the classroom, checking when I had tests. Then when we got to practice, keeping me to the highest standards, making sure I understood what our team expectations were and then pushing me so that I could become better.”
Culture of trust
Team chemistry does not form overnight, nor does it only happen during games. Duke built it over months of shared experiences, from preseason training to spring meetings. Chemistry is maintained in the small moments, like team dinners and pre-game rituals.
“Something that really stands out to me is just, it'll sound cheesy, but how much fun we have together," fifth-year Katie Groff said. “We spend so much time together … we have to spend so many hours together, and even in times that would be free time for us, we choose to spend it with each other. That establishes a sense of trust within the group that I think carries over onto the field."
This trust has been evident on the field, with Duke’s ability to play out of the back and break down opposition. They have developed a rhythm that is almost impossible to defend.
With every extra pass, off-ball run or defensive cover, the Blue Devils are one step closer to making history by claiming a national championship in Church's final year. Whether they make it there or not, they have written themselves into history with a team culture that together, they will always remember.
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