Pittsburgh, Pa. – The Duquesne University women's basketball team opened its 2024-25 season on Monday evening, outscoring Princeton 20-4 in the fourth quarter to capture a 76-66 victory inside UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse. With the win, the Dukes improved to 1-0 on the season and have won two of its last three season openers.

FOURTH QUARTER CHARGE
Trailing 62-56 heading to the final frame, Duquesne put together a 20-4 quarter in capturing its first victory of the season. The Dukes scored 14 straight points to open the fourth, sparked by junior Jerni Kiaku with a layup. Senior Megan McConnell followed with a pull up jumper before burying a triple to give the Dukes a 64-62 lead. Graduate student Hutcherson went one of two from the chalk before freshman Nadia Moore connected on a corner triple and McConnell tallied a layup to cap the stint. Princeton finally got on the board at the 2:34 mark with a pair of free throws but the Dukes continued to pour it on as sophomore Raymi Coueta delivered a layup and junior Andjela Matic connected on a pair from the charity stripe to seal the deal for Duquesne.

DEFENSIVELY STOUT
A key to the Dukes success against the Tigers was on the defensive end. Duquesne held Princeton to just 7.1 percent (1-of-14) shooting from the floor in the fourth quarter while forcing five turnovers and collecting a pair of steals. For the game, the Dukes forced the Tigers into 18 miscues while totaling eight steals on the evening. Seven different Dukes registered a steal, led by McConnell with two. Defense turned to offense for Duquesne as it recorded 25 points off turnovers, 15 points coming off nine miscues in the second half alone.

QUOTABLE
"Some of you have heard me use the term – relentless joy … There's the definition after tonight," head coach Dan Burt said. "We played with incredible effort, energy and juice, as we like to say, and we did it for one another and did it against a very good opponent. To hold a team of Princeton's caliber to seven percent shooting and shut them out for about seven minutes of the fourth quarter, really speaks to our conditioning level and into the way we're playing."

CAREER DAY
Senior Megan McConnell was the lone starter returning for the Dukes this season and she did not disappoint on opening night. She produced a career-high 24 points on 10-of-16 shooting (62.5 percent) from the floor while going 4-of-8 (50.0 percent) from long range. McConnell collected five assists, three rebounds and two steals on the evening. The Pittsburgh native scored 14 of career-high 24 points in the second half, finishing 6-of-10 shooting, with a pair of triples. McConnell has posted six 20+ point performances in her career and 63 double-digit scoring efforts while registering her 53^rd game with at least 5 assists.

DUQUESNE DEBUT
Seven different Dukes made their Duquesne debut against Princeton on Monday evening. Gabby Hutcherson, Andjela Matic, and Reina Green took the floor for the first time in a Duquesne uniform while freshmen Nadia Moore, Mackenzie Blackford, Kellie McConnell, and Faith Walker donned the red and blue for the first time in their NCAA Division I career.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
Joining McConnell in double figures was Jerni Kiaku and Nadia Moore, who finished with 10 points each. Kiaku grabbed four rebounds while Moore finished with three boards and a steal. Andjela Matic, Raymi Coueta, and redshirt junior Kaitlyn Ammons all ended with six point each. Senior Kiandra Browne tallied a team-best five rebounds while Gabby Hutcherson registered a pair of rejections.

UP NEXT
Duquesne hits the road for the first time this season when it travels to State College to battle Penn State on Sunday, Nov. 1, with the opening tip scheduled for 1:00 p.m.