Category: Soccer

Duke women’s soccer reaches national quarterfinals after Michigan State victory

The Duke women’s soccer team shut out its third straight NCAA Tournament opponent on Sunday night, advancing to the quarterfinals.

The Duke women’s soccer team played its third NCAA Tournament game of the year at Koskinen Stadium on Sunday night, and Leah Freeman still hasn’t allowed a goal.

The Blue Devils smothered the Michigan State Spartans for a 2-0 victory in the third round, clinching a berth in the Elite Eight in head coach Robbie Church’s final season.

In similar fashion to its second-round win over Texas Tech, Duke spent most of the opening half in a scoreless draw. Midfielder Carina Lageyre and forward Devin Lynch, both juniors, eventually solved that problem with two goals on opposite sides of the break, but the Blue Devils’ defense gave them a massive margin for error.

The Spartans never got a shot going toward the goal, only getting three off during the entire night.

“I think that starts from our front line,” fifth-year midfielder Katie Groff said after the game. “We don’t talk about defending the goal that much, we talk about defending the halfway line and probably communicating…We just try to be disciplined and organized. You know, sometimes there’s a time for last ditch defending, but we like to eliminate everything else leading up to that.”

Michigan State keeper Kaitlyn Parks ended the game with 10 saves, but with the Blue Devils firing off 29 shots for the game, the Spartans never stood a chance.

Sunday night’s victory was the Blue Devils’ third consecutive shutout to open the NCAA Tournament. Duke defeated Howard 8-0 in the opening round before a 3-0 victory over the Red Raiders on Friday, giving the team a 13-0 cumulative score through the postseason.

Church and the Blue Devils get nearly a week off before a Saturday game against the Virginia Tech Hokies, another battle within Koskinen Stadium. A victory would send them to the College Cup for the first time since 2017 and the fifth time in program history.

Duke women’s soccer shuts out Texas Tech to reach third round of NCAA Tournament

Duke women’s soccer shut out yet another NCAA Tournament foe on Friday, beating Texas Tech 3-0 to reach the third round.

The Duke women’s soccer team held their postseason opponent scoreless at Koskinen Stadium for the second straight game, defeating the Texas Tech Red Raiders 3-0 on Friday night to reach the third round of the NCAA Tournament.

The Blue Devils entered Friday’s game with nothing but momentum. Duke entered the postseason as the top overall seed after a 14-2-1 regular season record, and it delivered on that reputation with an 8-0 victory over Howard after sophomore Mia Minestrella scored four goals. However, the Red Raiders held their own for nearly half the game with no score through the first 43 minutes.

However, as the opening half drew to a close, a familiar name came through for the Blue Devils. Fifth-year midfielder Maggie Graham, who scored twice against Howard, managed to beat a defender to control a deflected ball near the top of the box with about 70 seconds left on the clock.

Graham surged forward and booted an effort toward the far corner of the net, just beating the outstretched hand of Red Raiders goalie Faith Nguyen for the opening goal.

Less than eight minutes after play resumed, Ella Hase raced down the pitch toward the goal before firing a crosser toward Graham. With a Texas Tech defender on her right arm, the Blue Devils star managed to pop a touch shot over Nguyen’s right shoulder for her second goal of the night.

In the blink of an eye, the Red Raiders went from holding their own against the best team in the country to a near-insurmountable deficit. Graham’s four postseason goals have her up to 14 for the season, 10 more than her previous career high.

Mia Oliaro tacked on the third goal of the evening in the final five minutes, and Duke keeper Leah Freeman only needed to save one attempt from the Red Raiders. Duke ended with 19 shots to Texas Tech’s five.

The Blue Devils will face Michigan State in the next round of the postseason after the Spartans took down the Texas Longhorns, 3-2.

Auburn bows out of NCAA Tournament in second round

The 2024 Auburn Tigers soccer season came to a disappointing end on Friday afternoon.

The 2024 Auburn Tigers soccer season came to a disappointing end on Friday afternoon.

Once the most dominant team in the sport, the Tigers struggled down the stretch of the regular season before backing into the NCAA Tournament. Karen Hoppa’s Tigers opened up the postseason with a victory at home against FIU last week, but failed to reach the Sweet 16 after a 2-1 loss at the hands of Ohio State in the Round of 32.

Auburn looked like the better team for the majority of the first half on a cold Friday in North Carolina, but a failure to put away scoring opportunities led to a deadlocked score for much of the opening frame. Ohio State finally broke through with forward Kailyn Dudukovic’s 19th goal of the season. The Buckeyes would go onto score another goal, which turned out to be the deciding score, on an Amanda Schluete header with just a minute to play in the first half.

The pair of first half scores from the Buckeyes proved too much to overcome, as even a late goal by Olivia Woodson in the 85th minute was too little too late for Karen Hoppa’s squad. Auburn will now look towards 2025 in hopes of returning to the NCAA Tournament in back-to-back years for the first time in nearly two decades.

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USMNT star Christian Pulisic had a weak explanation for his Donald Trump dance goal celebration

If you’re going to make a political statement, stand by it.

In the wake of Donald Trump’s election for a second presidential term, we’ve seen several athletes signal their support for Trump by copying a dance the president-elect has been known to do at his rallies. But when it came time to explain the dance, they all had similar answers.

U.S. men’s national team star Christian Pulisic was no different.

Pulisic — who is enjoying a career-best season at AC Milan — scored the opening goal in the USMNT’s CONCACAF Nations League quarterfinal win against Jamaica on Monday. And when Pulisic made his celebratory trot to the corner flag, many were surprised to see Pulisic break out that same Donald Trump dance we’ve already witnessed from Brock Bowers and Jon Jones.

Now, Pulisic is entitled to his political opinions — no matter how divisive they may be. And it’s no secret where he stands in that regard. But what was odd was how he brushed off the dance as simply something he saw as “funny.”

Pulisic said after the match via The Athletic:

“Well obviously that’s the Trump dance,” Pulisic said when asked whether he intentionally celebrated with viral moves. “It was just a dance that everyone’s doing. He’s the one who created it. I just thought it was funny.”

He continued:

“I saw everyone doing it yesterday in the NFL, I saw Jon Jones do it,” Pulisic said after the game. “We’re just having a bit of fun, so I thought it was a pretty fun dance.”

…

“No, not at all,” Pulisic said. “It’s not a political dance. It was just for fun. I saw a bunch of people do it and I thought it was funny, so I enjoyed it. I hope some people did, at least.”

And while teammates Weston McKennie (a vocal Trump critic) and Ricardo Pepi joined Pulisic on the dance, it’s awfully disingenuous for Pulisic to dismiss a clearly political dance as something he happened to see in the NFL and UFC. It’s an inherently political statement, and if you’re going to make one, at least have the courage to stand by it and explain it.

When Colin Kaepernick took a knee during the national anthem to protest police brutality, he didn’t shy away from questions. When USWNT legend Megan Rapinoe did the same, she was also able to answer for it. She wrote an entire piece about it.

If Pulisic wants to use his platform as the face of the USMNT to do that dance, he should be brave enough to give an honest explanation. He wasn’t willing to do that on Monday.

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Clemson men’s soccer earns NCAA Tournament national seed

Clemson earns a national seed.

CLEMSON, S.C. – Following the program’s fifth ACC Tournament Championship appearance in six seasons, Clemson men’s soccer earned the No. 9 national seed and a first-round bye in the top left quad of the NCAA Tournament bracket, as announced during the selection show on Monday.

The Tigers will face the winner of Thursday’s Providence/Bucknell matchup on Sunday at Historic Riggs Field. Kickoff is scheduled for 6:00 p.m. Tickets for Sunday’s match will be $8 for adults, $5 for children under the age of 12 and children under the age of two get in for free. Fans can purchase tickets here.

This marks the 10th time in 11 seasons the Tigers have earned a national seed and a first-round bye. It also marks the ninth time in 11 seasons the Tigers will open the NCAA Tournament at Historic Riggs Field (2020 was conducted at neutral sites due to the COVID-19 pandemic).

The Tigers are one of seven ACC teams to secure a top-16 national seed (No. 2 Pitt, No. 8 Wake Forest, No. 10 Duke, No. 11 Virginia, No. 12 SMU, No. 16 Stanford). This marks the 37th overall appearance for the Tigers in the NCAA Tournament.

Clemson ended the regular season with a 11-2-3 record and No. 2 seed in the ACC Tournament. The Tigers advanced to the ACC Championship game, but fell to Wake Forest in penalty kicks (1-1, 7-6 PKs).

For the full tournament bracket, click here.

– Via Clemson Athletic Communications 

Auburn moves onto second round of NCAA Tournament

The Auburn Tigers are five wins away from finishing their magical soccer season in a National Championship

The Auburn Tigers are five wins away from finishing their magical soccer season in a National Championship. Karen Hoppa’s squad opened up their NCAA Tournament run with a resounding 4-1 victory, leading Conference USA opponent Florida International end-to-end on Friday night.

Auburn began the scoring just four minutes into the contest after a beautiful Anna Haddock set piece led to a LJ Knox deflection in the box, resulting in an own goal by FIU. The Tigers continued to pressure the FIU backline throughout the opening half, again breaking through off of another Anna Haddock seat piece leading to the first goal of the season from Jessica Osborn. The Tigers would go on to add another pair of goals in the second stanza, including another season-first goal from junior defensive mid fielder Hayden Colson in the 87th minute of action.

The victory improved Auburn to a 9-0-3 record at home this season. With no more home contest on the schedule, the Tigers are have finished the season undefeated at home for the first time since 2003.

Up next for the Tigers is a No. 10 Ohio State on November 20. The two squads last met in early September, where a second half goal from Olivia Woodson was the deciding factor in a 1-0 victory. If Karen Hoppa’s Tigers can get by the Buckeyes again, they’ll head to the Elite 8 for the second time in school history.

Contact/Follow us @TheAuburnWire on  X (Twitter), and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Auburn news, notes, and opinion. You can also follow Brian on Twitter @TheRealBHauch

Mia Minestrella finishes with four goals in Duke’s first-round NCAA Tournament victory

Duke women’s soccer, the top overall seed in the NCAA Tournament, cruised to a 8-0 victory over Howard in the first round on Friday.

The Duke women’s soccer team looked the part of the first overall seed against Howard on Friday night thanks to six combined goals from Mia Minestrella and Maggie Graham.

Minestrella, a sophomore who entered the postseason with eight goals for the year, put her first two on the board in short succession midway through the first half. She somehow found a gap between three Bison defenders in the 18th minute, firing a laser into the net from the edge of the penalty box, and she punched another kick past the Howard goalie from close range just eight minutes later to make it a 2-0 game.

Graham, the team’s leading scorer through the regular season with 10 goals, tacked on two herself in the opening minutes of the second half, but it was Minestrella’s turn again soon after. The sophomore clinched her first career hat trick in the 55th minute, pelting the ball toward the right corner of the goal and raising her arms in triumph before it even hit the net.

Her fourth goal, a header, put the game even farther out of reach as the Duke continued to hold Howard scoreless for the night. The Blue Devils eventually won 8-0.

The Blue Devils advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament with the victory, where they will face either the LSU Tigers or Texas Tech Red Raiders.

Clemson Women’s Soccer adds nine new Tigers on National Signing Day

Clemson softball adds new faces.

CLEMSON, S.C. – Head Coach Eddie Radwanski officially announced the addition of nine student-athletes to the Clemson women’s soccer program on National Signing Day. The class includes Elle Bissinger, Maddie Costello, Jolie Jenkins, Neely Kerr, Reese Klein, Taylor Leib, Madeline Parrott, Carla Small and Alessandra Washington.

“Congratulations to our new signees as we welcome them to Clemson Women’s Soccer,” Radwanski said. “This recruiting class ranks up there as one of our best recruiting classes.  It is a diverse group of talented players who are not only very good, talented soccer players but very good people. They competed at the highest levels of youth soccer and several have valuable US Youth National Team experience.  We are excited to welcome them to the Clemson Family!”

According to Top Drawer Soccer, the 2025 Clemson recruiting class is ranked No. 2 in the nation as they have four players in the Top 50 and eight players in the Top 200.

-Press Release via Clemson Athletic Communications 

Auburn soccer earns home match with FIU to open NCAA Tournament

Auburn will host the Conference USA Tournament Champion FIU Panthers on November 15 to open postseason play.

The magical 2024 Auburn soccer season is not over just yet.

The Tigers, who scuffled down the stretch of a once dominant 2024 campaign, earned a No. 6 seed in the NCAA Tournament after a 12-3-4 regular season.

Head coach Karen Hoppa’s Tigers will open their quest for a national championship at the Auburn Soccer Complex on November 15, where they will host the Conference USA Tournament Champion FIU Panthers at 6 PM CST. The Panthers, who finished the regular season 13-4-2, played one game against SEC competition this season, losing to Oklahoma in a 2-1 thriller early in the year.

Led by senior [autotag]Anna Haddock[/autotag] and sophomore [autotag]Olivia Woodson[/autotag] up front along with senior goalkeeper [autotag]Maddie Prohaska[/autotag] on the back line, the Tigers can make a deep run into the tournament if they can find the form that helped the team outscore opponents 30-0 to open the season.

The aforementioned Haddock is confident in her team’s ability to re-find what made them one of the best teams in the country early in the season.

“We have what we need to be successful this postseason,” Haddock said. “All that matters is each other… I’m excited to show everyone what we can do moving forward.”

This is the 18th time Auburn has been selected to ‘The Dance’ in its’ history. The Tigers’ best finish came back in 2016 when they made a run to the Elite 8 before bowing out at the hands of eventual National Champion USC. If Karen Hoppa hopes to lead the Tigers to their first Final Four in program history, it will take a major turnaround after Auburn ended its season winning just one of its final five games.

Contact/Follow us @TheAuburnWire on  X (Twitter), and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Auburn news, notes, and opinions. You can also follow Brian on Twitter @TheRealBHauch

Duke draws the No. 1 overall seed in NCAA Division I Women’s Soccer Championship bracket

The Duke Blue Devils were announced as the No. 1 overall seed in the NCAA Division I Women’s Soccer Championship bracket on Monday.

The Duke women’s soccer team was announced as the No. 1 overall seed in the NCAA Division I Women’s Soccer Championship bracket on Monday evening.

The Blue Devils, who won the ACC regular-season title for the third time this century, finished with a 14-1-1 record before losing to the North Carolina Tar Heels in the semifinals of the conference tournament. Duke still owns the season series against their in-state rivals, beating them in Durham for the first time ever in September before winning in Chapel Hill on October 31.

Before the ACC Championship, the Blue Devils hadn’t lost a game since the season opener against the Ohio State Buckeyes on August 15th.

Head coach Robbie Church announced ahead of the season that this year would be his last with the program, and it seems like Duke has rallied around him. Fifth-year senior Maggie Graham earned ACC Midfielder of the Year honors after scoring 10 goals and adding five assists in 17 games, and sophomore Mia Oliara (a Chapel Hill native) paced the team with 11 assists.

Cameron Roller and Leah Freeman were named the ACC Defensive Player of the Year and ACC Goalkeeper of the Year, respectively.

The Blue Devils face Howard in the opening round on Friday, and should they advance, either the LSU Tigers or Texas Tech Red Raiders would be waiting for them in the next round.