GAME 1
Mercyhurst (0-0) vs. Duquesne (0-0)
Thursday, August 15, 2024 | 7:00 p.m.
Rooney Field | Pittsburgh, Pa.
 
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From The Pitch
 
- The Duquesne University women's soccer team opens its 2024 season Thursday, August 15, with a 7:00 p.m. match against Mercyhurst at Rooney Field.
 
- The Lakers are in their first season as an NCAA Division I member after announcing the move in April of 2024. Thursday's game against the Dukes marks the department's first contest as a full-time NCAA Division I institution. Mercyhurst is a member of the Northeast Conference (NEC).
 
- The Dukes are led by head coach Al Alvine, who is in his 13th season leading the program in 2024. The program's all-time leader for wins, Alvine has led Duquesne to an overall record of 84-91-29 (.483).
 
- A total of nine starters return for the Dukes in 2024, including each of the top three scorers. Junior forward Maya Matesa tied for fifth in the Atlantic 10 in goals (7) last season while posting a team-high 15 points.
 
- In season openers at Rooney Field under Alvine, the Dukes are a 4-2 (.667). Thursday's game against Mercyhurst is its first season opener at home since 2022, when Duquesne earned a 2-1 win over Ohio. The Dukes also own season-opening home wins over Saint Francis U (2013 and 2021) and Robert Morris (2015).  
 
- Overall in season openers since the program began in 1995, Duquesne has posted a record of 12-15-2 (.448). The Dukes are looking for their third season-opening win in the last four years Thursday against Mercyhurst.
 
- Duquesne heads across the Monongahela River to take on Pitt Sunday, August 18, at 3:00 p.m. at Highmark Stadium.  
 
Scouting the Lakers – In first season as an NCAA Division I member ... located in Erie, Pa. ... Played men's and women's hockey at the NCAA Division I level but announced in April that effective Fall of 2024 the other 24 varsity sports, previously playing at the NCAA Division II level in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC), accepted an invitation to join the NEC … Thursday marks the first meeting ever between the Dukes and Lakers … Finished 16-4-1 (.786) overall in 2023, including 14-1-1 (.906) in the PSAC, and made an appearance in the 2024 NCAA Championship under first-year head coach Rich Wall.
 
20/20 – Sophomore midfielder Jayden Sharpless was the only member of the Dukes to start all 20 games last season as Duquesne posted an overall record of 8-8-4 (.500). In logging 1,409 minutes as a redshirt freshman after transferring from Georgia State, Sharpless finished with 16 shots, including six on goal, and notched a goal and an assist. Her first NCAA goal proved to be a game-winner, as she scored the first goal in a 3-0 win over Richmond in the final home game of the 2023 campaign at Rooney Field.
   
On The Attack – Junior forward Maya Matesa enters the 2024 campaign as the leading active career scorer for the Dukes, as she owns 19 career points in 32 games courtesy of nine goals and an assist. In two seasons on the Bluff, Matesa has unleashed 63 shots, including 32 on goal. Matesa's teammate at forward, junior Brianna Moore, has played 36 games in two years at Duquesne and owns 14 career points thanks to six goals and a pair of helpers. Moore owns 28 career shots, including 13 on goal.
 
Defense Wins Championships – Returning as the starting goalkeeper for the Dukes in 2024 is senior Maddy Neundorfer, who owns a 13-15-7 (.471) career mark in net to go along with a 1.49 goals against average, 191 saves and a .786 save percentage. Neundorfer is coming off a 2023 campaign in which she registered eight shutouts (while also combing for another), matching a Duquesne single-season school record originally established by Kyra Murphy in 2017.  
 
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