Pittsburgh, Pa. – The Duquesne University women's soccer team opened a two-game road trip Sunday, posting a 6-0 victory over Mercyhurst in Erie, Pa., at Saxon Field. Thanks to the win, the Dukes improved to 3-0 for the first time since 1998.
 
POINTS OF EMPHASIS
Senior forward Maya Matesa, who entered play this weekend leading NCAA Division I in points per game (2.00), needed less than 10 minutes to keep that average. She opened the scoring at 5:49, racing down the far sideline with three defenders around her before unleashing a rocket that found the upper left corner of the net and gave Duquesne a 1-0 edge. Less than four minutes later, the Dukes were on the attack again, with senior forward Mackenzie Muir firing a pass into the box from the far sideline. Matesa was in a perfect spot, as on the other side of the pass she flicked the ball high and over the head of Mercyhurst goalkeeper Rylee Kumer and into the goal to push the advantage for Duquesne to 2-0.
 
THE HAT TRICK
Leading, 2-0, entering the second half, Matesa wasted no time completing the hat trick. Off a corner kick by junior forward Kaitlyn Killinger, Matesa provided a header that found the back of the net and expanded the lead for the Dukes to 3-0 at 47:07. It marks the second consecutive year that a student-athlete from Duquesne registered a hat trick against the Lakers. Through the first three contests of the 2025 season, Matesa has already matched her career high for goals in a season with seven, which originally came in 2023. She is also just one point away from her personal best of 15, also set during her sophomore campaign.
 
DEFENSIVELY SPEAKING
While the Duquesne offense was in top form Sunday against the Lakers, the defensive unit put forth arguably one of its best games in program history. Mercyhurst failed to get off a shot in the contest, allowing junior goalkeeper Ali Hughes to collect her second consecutive clean sheet. Dating back to the beginning of the second half in a 3-2 victory at Kent State (8/17) in the 2025 season opener, the Dukes have outshot their opponents, 66-9, over the last over the last 225 minutes. Senior Eva LaVecchia has been a key to the backline for Duquesne, as she is one of two field players to have played all 270 minutes so far this season, joining junior midfielder Jayden Sharpless.
 
SENIOR LEADERSHIP
Senior forward Brianna Moore got into the scoring act for Duquesne in the win over the Lakers at 51:22, taking a pass from LaVecchia before beating a defender one-on-one and scoring her second goal of the campaign. It marked the ninth consecutive goal for the Dukes dating back to last season scored by a member of the senior class. That streaked was snapped at 59:49, as junior forward Kayla Leseck, already with three assists to her credit this year, found the back of the net to push the advantage to 5-0. Senior midfielder Libby Majka capped the scoring in the victory, taking a feed from senior midfielder Emma Hospodka from the sideline before a header hit the hands of Kumer before finding its way into the net to settle the final score.
 
NOTES
Sharpless earned her 40th consecutive starting assignment dating back to the beginning of the 2023 season Sunday at Mercyhurst … Duquesne finished with 34 shots, its highest total since posting 35 last season in a 6-2 win over the Lakers at Rooney Field … Matesa and Killinger each finished with six shots for the Dukes, while Moore registered five … Matesa pushed her career point total to 44, becoming the sixth player in program history to eclipse 40 points … Former midfielder Erica Carey (2002-05) ranks fifth in program history in points with 46 … Matesa also moved into fourth place all-time on the Bluff in career goals (19), one behind Carey … Moore's marker against the Lakers pushed her career total to 16, moving her into a four-way tie for seventh all-time in the record book.
 
UP NEXT
Duquesne wraps up a two-game road trip Thursday, August 28, with a 7:00 p.m. match at West Virginia.
 
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