Pittsburgh, Pa. – The Duquesne University men's soccer team got back in the win column Wednesday, earning a 3-0 win over Rhode Island at Rooney Field. In improving to 6-0 at home to open the season for the second time in three years while also stretching their winning streak at Rooney Field to nine dating back to last season, the Dukes improved to 8-2-1 (.773) overall during the 2024 season, including 3-1 (.750) in the Atlantic 10.
POINTS OF EMPHASIS
Scoreless through the first 45 minutes, Duquesne was able to get on the board at 62:31. Redshirt sophomore
Jaxon Ervin was tackled in the box, affording the Dukes a penalty kick.
Dakota Jonke was called upon, and he scored from the spot for the first goal of the contest. It marked the second goal of the season for Jonke, with both coming on a penalty kick.
BREAKOUT
The marker from Jonke began a big night for the junior forward, who became the first member of the Dukes this season to register a four-point game. Isnaba Namusse was issued a red card at 72:26, and it took just over four minutes for Duquesne to capitalize. Jonke dribbled toward the box before his outlet pass found freshman forward
Bendix Bennetzen, who unleashed a missile from 25 yards out that curled into the top left corner of the goal to give the Dukes a 2-0 edge. Two-and-a-half minutes later, Jonke helped ice the game, feeding senior forward
Maxi Hopfer near the top of the box, who dribbled left before lacing one past URI goalkeeper Edu Rodriguez and a 3-0 advantage at 79:04.
QUOTABLE
"Dakota was clicking like that all spring and all preseason for the most part, and that injury in the first game really set him back," Brooks said. "It's been a building process to get back to this point for him, but ultimately we knew we had confidence in him and we knew it was just a matter of time. Obviously, he picked a great night for it to click. It's all the work done behind the scenes in training, the extra PK's that are attempted. The confidence they bring to the field every single day. It's all those little things. We've got a list of guys, and (Dakota) is No. 1 on the list for it."
SCORE, SCORE, SCORE
Hopfer picked up his team-high fifth goal of the season, including his fourth in the last five games, pushing his career total to 23. His marker against the Rams moved him into sole possession of third place all-time at Duquesne for goals, trailing only Damien Pottinger (2000-03) and Joshua Patterson (2009-12), who concluded their careers with 38 and 29, respectively. Hopfer also cracked the top five for career points with the Dukes, as his 58 is tied for fifth with Travis MacKenzie (2004-07). Finally, Hopfer has unleashed 189 career shots in his time on the Bluff, tied with Simon Gomez (2010-13) for third all-time as he looks to join Patterson (220) and Pottinger (212) as the only players in program history to accrue 200 career shots.
QUOTABLE
"I give the guys a lot of credit," head coach
Chase Brooks said. "To come off the game we had the other night and respond this way, as a coach I couldn't ask for much more. Confidence. It's what you're looking for as you play every game. It's building confidence and continuing to move forward. Obviously played a great team tonight, as their record is their record for a reason. Getting that first one in helped open the floodgates, because now they were chasing the game. From there it was about continuing to push forward."
NOTES
For Bennetzen, the goal marked the first of his NCAA career … Rhode Island (7-2-3 | 2-2-0 Atlantic 10) failed to register a corner kick in the first half for the second consecutive match … Rodriguez entered Wednesday's game leading NCAA Division I in save percentage (.902) and finished with five saves, including a pair of highlight reel rejections in the second half … A total of 20 Dukes saw action in the win, including the return of freshman
Marko Rasmussen for the first time since a 1-0 win at Xavier … Senior goalkeeper
Zoltan Nagy notched his fourth clean sheet of the 2024 season and posted three saves … The nine consecutive wins for the Dukes at Rooney Field is the second longest home winning streak in program history, with Duquesne having an opportunity to tie the record in its next home game against Davidson (Oct. 19).
UP NEXT
Duquesne takes to the road for yet another key Atlantic 10 match Saturday, Oct. 12, with a 7:00 p.m. game in Fairfax, Va., at No. 13 George Mason. The Dukes will follow by closing out the regular season with three of their final four matches at home.
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