NCAA Men

Speel Named Goalkeeper of the Year, Seven Blue Devils Earn All-ACC Honors

Speel Named Goalkeeper of the Year, Seven Blue Devils Earn All-ACC Honors


DURHAM, N.C. – Duke men’s soccer goalkeeper Wessel Speel has been named ACC Goalkeeper of the Year, the league announced on Wednesday. Speel becomes the second ACC Goalkeeper of the Year from Duke, joining Eliot Hamill, as the Blue Devils have won the award twice since its conception in 2022.
 
Speel is joined by sophomore forward Ulfur Bjornsson as First Team All-ACC selections. Second Team All-ACC honors went to graduate forward Adam Luckhurst, while Third Team honors went to junior defender Kamran Acito, junior midfielder Kenan Hotand senior defender Ruben Mesalles. Freshman Jamie Kabuusu was Duke’s lone honoree on the All-ACC Freshman Team.
 
The seven recipients of All-ACC honors are the most by Duke since 2022 when the Blue Devils won four of the six major awards and saw nine student-athletes named across all teams.
 
The second Duke player all-time to earn ACC Goalkeeper of the Year honors, Speel leads the league in goals against average this season (.988) and is tied for the league lead in shutouts (6). During the Blue Devils’ 11-match unbeaten streak, spanning from October to mid-November, Speel held opponents scoreless for 648 consecutive minutes, earning five shutouts and recording 24 saves. On the year, the native of Utrecht, Netherlands, posted an 11-3-4 record, had six shutouts, allowed 17 goals, and tallied 43 saves.
 
Bjornsson, the 2023 All-Freshman and Second Team nominee, earned a spot on the First Team in 2024 after an impressive season in front of the net. The Hafnarfjordur, Iceland, native set a new career high in goals with 13 and points with 29. Bjornsson added three assists to his tally this season and has recorded three game-winning goals in his 1248 minutes of action. To open the 2024 campaign, Bjornsson recorded four goals in two games out West, including his second career hat trick in Duke’s 3-2 victory over UC San Diego.
 
Luckhurst, a 6-0 forward from Santa Barbara, Calif., joined the Blue Devils in 2024 and made an immediate impact at the top of the formation. Luckhurst tallied his first goals of the season in a three-tally effort against Averett before scoring goals in five straight contests (UNC, Stanford, NC State, SMU, and Elon). 
 
Actio, a 6-3 defender from Manhattan, N.Y., has been a mainstay in Duke’s backline his entire career. In 2024, Actio has…

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