No. 7 Duke Hosts Denver in NCAA Second Round

DURHAM – The seventh-seeded Duke men’s soccer team begins play in the NCAA Tournament on Sunday, hosting Denver in a second-round match at Koskinen Stadium at 1 p.m., with streaming available on ESPN+. It’s the first meeting in the NCAA Tournament between the Blue Devils (11-1-4) and Pioneers (14-2-5), with Duke holding a 2-0 advantage in the overall series.

DUKE IN THE NCAA TOURNAMENT

• Duke makes its eighth appearance in the NCAA Tournament under the leadership of John Kerr.
• The seventh-seeded Blue Devils are 32-26-2 all-time in the tournament, headlined by the program’s national title in 1986.
• The Blue Devils have received a national seed in each of their last four appearances (2017, 2018, 2021, 2022)
• This is the second year in a row Duke was picked as the seventh overall seed.

THE SCOUTING REPORT

• Denver won its first-round NCAA match, 1-0, against San Diego on Thursday, Nov. 17.
• The Pioneers played a man up for the final 37 minutes of regulation, but were unable to find a go-ahead goal.
• Denver’s Kengo Ohira sent home the first goal of the in the 93rd minute, and the Pioneers defense held strong for the remaining 17 minutes of extra time.
• Denver’s offense is ranked 33rd in the country for goals per game (1.95)
• Similar to Duke, the Denver defense is ranked in the top-ten nationally in terms of goals allowed (.600).

SERIES HISTORY

• Sunday’s match is just the third overall meeting between Duke and Denver, with Duke currently holding a 2-0 advantage in the series.
• The Blue Devils and Pioneers last met in 2019, a 1-0 victory. Both previous meetings were also played in Durham.
• This will be the first postseason meeting between the two teams.

BY THE NUMBERS

Entering the NCAA Tournament, Eliot Hamill ranks first in the country for both save percentage (.875) and goals against average (.438).

1999 – The last time Duke went undefeated in the regular season. The Blue Devils lost just one game that season, a NCAA Tournament match against Santa Clara.

19 – Current goal differential for Duke. Having allowed just seven opponent goals so far in 2022, best in the country, the Blue Devils have a current goals against per game of .438.

4 – Consecutive NCAA selections for Duke that included a first-round bye with a top-16 seed.

3 – The Blue Devils have advanced to the third round in…