GAME 3
Duquesne (3-0-0) at West Virginia (1-2-0)
Thursday, August 28 | 7:00 p.m.
Dick Dlesk Soccer Stadium | Morgantown, W.Va.

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From The Pitch

- The Duquesne University women's soccer team wraps up a two-game road trip Thursday with a 7:00 p.m. match against West Virginia in Morgantown, W.Va., at Dick Dlesk Stadium.

- The Dukes, off to their first 3-0 start since 1998, are looking to match their best start in program history. The 1998 Duquesne squad opened the year 4-0.

- Senior forward Maya Matesa recorded a hat trick, scoring each of the first three goals for Duquesne, in a 6-0 victory at Mercyhurst (8/24) that opened a two-game road trip.

- Also scoring in the win over the Lakers was senior forward Brianna Moore, who picked up her second goal of the season, junior forward Kayla Leseck and senior forward Libby Majka.

- Matesa leads NCAA Division I in goals per game (2.33) and points per game (4.67), while her seven markers through three games is tied for the NCAA lead with Hope Leyba of Colorado out of the Big 12. Leyba has scored seven goals in four contests.

- Thanks to five goals in victories over Saint Francis (8/21) and at Mercyhurst (8/24), Matesa was named the Atlantic 10 Offensive Player of the Week (8/25) for the second consecutive week to open the 2025 campaign. She is just the third member of the Dukes in school history to earn A-10 weekly twice in a season, including the second to earn Atlantic 10 Offensive Player of the Week in consecutive weeks.

- Trailing, 2-0, entering the second half in their season opener at Kent State (8/17), the Dukes scored three times in the second 45 minutes for the victory, including two goals on a penalty kick separated by 46 seconds to grab the lead.

- Since falling behind in their 2025 season opener, 2-0, against the Golden Flashes, the Dukes have scored 12 unanswered goals.

- The Dukes are led by head coach Jessica Giegucz, who 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.

- Duquesne's win at Mercyhurst (8/24) marked the 200th game for Jessica Giegucz as a head coach in stints at Northland College, Slippery Rock and Duquesne. In 12 seasons, Giegucz owns an overall record of 118-57-25 (.653).

- 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 Dukes return home to Rooney Field after taking on the Mountaineers Thursday, hosting Cleveland State Thursday, Sept. 4, at 7:00 p.m.

Scouting the Mountaineers – Located in Morgantown, W.Va. … Member of the Big 12 … Owns a record of 1-2-0 through first three games of the 2025 season … West Virginia opened its 2025 campaign with a 1-0 home loss to No. 15 Virginia (8/14) and posted a 3-0 victory over Akron (8/21) before suffering a 3-1 setback in its first road game at No. 14 Penn State (8/24) … The Mountaineers have outshot their opponents, 47-14, through the first three games, including 31-7 in the second half … Senior forward Taylor White owns five points to lead WVU thanks to two goals and an assist … Thursday marks the 14th meeting in the all-time series with West Virginia, with the Mountaineers leading, 11-0-2 … The Dukes have dropped seven consecutive games in the series, with the last tie a 1-1 draw Sept. 6, 2012.

Head of the Class – The 11 student-athletes that make up the senior class for Duquesne in 2025 has put up some strong numbers since the beginning of the 2022 season, combining for 133 points thanks to 49 goals and 35 assists. Senior forward Maya Matesa is the program's active career leader for goals with 19, while senior forward Brianna Moore has tallied 16 career markers. Senior midfielder Mackenzie Muir, meanwhile, is the program's active career leader in assists with 13. Combined, that trio has racked up 44 goals and 23 assists. A member of the senior class for Duquesne was involved in each of the last nine goals scored by the Dukes dating to last season before junior forward Kayla Leseck gave the Dukes a 5-0 lead at Mercyhurst (8/24) with her second career goal at 59:49.

Moving On Up – The early offensive output for senior forward Maya Matesa, with seven goals in the first three games of the year, has her climbing the ranks in the Duquesne record book. Having already matched her season high for goals (7) in three games that she originally established as a sophomore in 2023, Matesa became the sixth player on the Bluff to eclipse the 40-point plateau, as she sits two points behind Erica Carey (2002-05) for fifth (46) and four points shy of Katie Schwager (2001-04) for fourth (48). Thanks to 19 goals over the last four seasons, Matesa ranks fourth in the Duquesne career record book. The school standard of 25 markers is owned by Katie O'Connor from 2015 to 2018.

Back and Forth – 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. In the 2025 season opener, a 3-2 victory at Kent State (8/17), Muir tied the contest, 2-2, by converting on a penalty kick and in the process collected her first road goal since her freshman year. The Dukes also improved to 8-1 (.889) over the last four seasons when Muir finds the back of the net.

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. Through the first three contests of the 2025 season, the Dukes have amassed 31 points thanks to 12 goals and seven assists.

Early Offense – The early offensive explosion for Duquesne has the squad ranked in the top 10 in NCAA Division I in a number of categories. Entering Thursday's game at West Virginia, the Dukes sit eighth in the country in scoring offense (4.00 goals per game), sixth in shots per contest (26.00) and ninth in shots on goal per game (10.67). In addition, Duquesne ranks 15th in NCAA Division I in corner kicks per game (8.33) and 18th in points per contest (10.33).

Lineup Stalwart – Junior Jayden Sharpless has been a steady presence for the Dukes in the midfield over the last three seasons, as she is the only player in that stretch to have started all 40 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 43 shots, 16 of which have been on goal.

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