Pittsburgh, Pa. – The Duquesne University women's soccer team closed the non-conference portion of its 2026 schedule Sunday, dropping a 2-1 decision to Ohio at Rooney Field. The Dukes will enter Atlantic 10 action with an overall record of 3-4-1 (.438).
POINTS OF EMPHASIS
Duquesne, which has scored five goals in the opening 15 minutes of play in its previous seven contests, looked poised to strike early Sunday against the Bobcats. In the first 13:06 of action, the Dukes were able to get off eight shots, including four from senior
Kayla Leseck. Ohio goalkeeper Ayla Rammel was able to keep Duquesne off the board, however, making a diving save on a shot from Leseck at 6:08 as well as posting a save at 12:02 after a shot from freshman
Molly Kinsella that was heading for the top left of the goal. The Bobcats were able to capitalize after a hydration break, as a long pass from Jaimason Brooker found Ava Bell, who was able to slip a shot past senior
Ali Hughes and give Ohio a 1-0 lead at 26:13.
SHOT CHART
Failing to accumulate at least 10 shots in each of its first six games of the campaign, Duquesne posted 42 shots in its final two non-conference contests (21.0 per game), finishing with 17 Sunday against the Bobcats. It's a stark contrast from the opening six matches, as the Dukes logged 41 shots (6.83 per game) in the opening 540 minutes of the year. Despite falling behind, 2-0, early in the second half on a strike from Sania Dearing of Ohio, the Dukes continued to maintain their attack. The first shot of the second half for Duquesne was able to find the back of the net. Out of a corner kick from sophomore
Brynn Ramsey, who placed a perfect ball in the box, freshman
Molly Kinsella rose up and provided a header that found the back of the net to pull Duquesne to within 2-1 at 52:25. The Dukes almost found the equalizer late but were unable to cash in. Senior
Kaitlyn Killinger unleashed a shot that hit the crossbar at 81:01, and in the final minute, freshman
Addy Mills also hit the crossbar in the final minute.
QUOTABLE
"We had a ton of quality opportunities, especially early in the game," head coach
Jessica Giegucz said. "We'll learn from it. I felt like we were dominate for the majority of the game in possession, and we're creating a lot. That's a positive right now. I had to tell the girls to continue to believe in what we're doing. They have to have a belief system to be able to put some of those in the back of the net. We created just as many chances in the second half as the first half, but the conversion rate has to be a bit higher."
SENIOR SALUTE
Prior to the game, Duquesne honored 12 student-athletes in their final year with the program as part of Senior Day festivities, including four transfers. A total of 11 of the 17 shots for the Dukes Sunday came from that class, including seven from Leseck, which was one off her career high of eight against George Mason last season. Killinger also fired a pair of shots, while seniors
Jayden Sharpless,
Reagan Basehore and
Kiley Johnson each played a full 90 minutes.
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"It's a great group," Giegucz said. "Every year that we have the opportunity to honor people who have been able to give back to the program, make the program better and make progress, it's exciting to be able to celebrate them. Some really wonderful people, and they deserve the opportunity to have their moment."
NOTES
The goal for Kinsella marked the first of her NCAA Division I career as she became the sixth different player this season to collect a goal for the first time collegiately … Duquesne wore white uniforms for just the second time in four home games this season … The Dukes finished the non-conference slate 2-3 (.400) against foes from the Mid-American Conference (MAC), yet own a mark of 3-2-1 (.583) against opponents from the state of Ohio … Duquesne dipped to 1-3 (.250) all-time against the Bobcats, who used 22 players Sunday at Rooney Field … Freshman
Carolyn Arcoleo played the most minutes off the bench for the Dukes with 43 … Sharpless is a perfect 8-for-8 in 90-minute games this season and has logged a full 90 minutes in 60.9 percent (39-of-64) of her career contests on the Bluff.
UP NEXT
Duquesne will host Rhode Island at Rooney Field Satuday, Sept. 19, at 4:00 p.m. in the opening game of a soccer doubleheader. The men's team for the Dukes will also open their Atlantic 10 schedule against URI at 7:00 p.m.
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