GAME 1
Duquesne (0-0-0) at Kent State (1-0-0)
Sunday, August 17, 2025 | 1:00 p.m.
Zoeller Field at Dix Stadium | Kent, Ohio

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From The Pitch

- The Duquesne University women's soccer team opens its 31st NCAA Division I season and its 2025 campaign Sunday with a 1:00 p.m. match against Kent State at Zoeller Field at Dix Stadium in Kent, Ohio.

- The Dukes open a new era Sunday against the Golden Flashes, as head coach Jessica Giegucz is in her first year at the helm of the program after spending the last 10 years as the head coach at NCAA Division II Slippery Rock out of the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC).

- Giegucz was named the sixth head coach in program history at Duquesne Dec. 20, 2024. In 10 seasons leading the Rock, Giegucz compiled an overall record of 104-48-24 (.659). She began her coaching career in Ashland, Wisc., at NCAA Division III Northland College, where she posted a mark of 11-9-1 (.548) in 2014 prior to being tabbed the head coach at Slippery Rock. In 11 seasons as a head coach, Giegucz owns an overall record of 115-57-25 (.647).

- Duquesne returns five starters from a 2024 squad that finished with an overall record of 9-7-1 (.559), including a mark of 3-6-1 (.350) in the Atlantic 10. Included among that group of starters is four of the top six scorers for the Dukes from last year.

- The top returning scorer for Duquesne this season is senior forward Brianna Moore, who finished with 18 points last year thanks to eight goals and two assists. She finished ninth in the Atlantic 10 in points per game (1.06) as well as 10th in points.

- The Dukes should also be bolstered by the return of seniors Maya Matesa and Mackenzie Muir, who combined for 26 points a year ago. Matesa finished with three goals and five assists, while Muir led Duquesne in assists (7) and added four goals.

- Moore enters the 2025 and her final campaign on the Bluff with 32 career points courtesy of 14 goals and four assists. She ranks just outside the top 10 all-time for career points, needing three to move into a three-way tie for 10th place in the Duquesne career records.

- Duquesne returns home after taking on Kent State Sunday to open the Giegucz era. The Dukes will host Saint Francis Thursday, August 21, in a 1:00 p.m. match. The game is part of a doubleheader at Rooney Field, as the men's program will open its 2025 season at 4:00 p.m. against Seton Hill.

Scouting the Golden Flashes – Located in Kent, Ohio … Opened its 2025 season with a 1-0 victory at Cleveland State (8/14) … Samantha Miller scored the lone goal of the contest for Kent State at 25:50, while Leah Shaffer earned the win in goal … The Golden Flashes yielded just three shots in their season-opening win, none of which were on goal … Sunday marks the seventh meeting in the all-time series between Kent State and Duquesne, with the two program's having split the previous six games … The Dukes earned a 4-2 over Kent State (9/8/24) last season at Rooney Field, with Brianna Moore accumulating two goals and an assist … The Golden Flashes posted a 2-1 triumph over Duquesne (9/10/23) in the last meeting between the two programs in Kent, Ohio … Kent State is led by Rob Marinaro, who has been part of the program since its inception since 1997 … Marinaro is a three-time Mid-American Conference (MAC) Coach of the Year and owns an overall record of 201-165-52 (.543).

On The Attack – Duquesne returns each of its top three players from 2024 in regard to generating chances, as seniors Maya Matesa (52), Mackenzie Muir (51) and Brianna Moore (48) combined for 151 shots last season, including 50 that were on goal. The returning trio accounted for almost half (47.5 percent) of the shots for the Dukes last season (151-of-318). Muir and Moore tied for team-high honors in shots on goal with 26 each, while Matesa enters her final season on the Bluff with 30 career points (12 goals, six assists) on 115 shots, including 50 on goal.

Split The Difference – Senior forward Mackenzie Muir notched each of her four goals last season on the home turf of Rooney Field. That's a stark contrast to her previous four career markers, which all came on the road during her rookie campaign in 2022. Duquesne enters the 2025 campaign with a record of 7-1 (.875) over the last three seasons when Muir finds the back of the net. In addition, six of her eight career markers have been game-winning goals.

Light Up Night – During the 2024 season, Duquesne reached the 90-point plateau for just the seventh time in program history as well as the first time since 2016, when the Dukes scored 97 points. Duquesne finished last year with 93 points, while the school record for points in a season is 104, which came in 2004.

Lineup Stalwart – Junior Jayden Sharpless has been a steady presence for the Dukes in the midfield over the last two seasons, as she is the only player in that stretch to have started all 37 games dating to the beginning of the 2023 campaign. Sharpless finished fifth for Duquesne last year in minutes played (1,298) and owns career totals of a goal and an assist on 39 shots, 14 of which have been on goal.

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