Rader’s Last Minute Goal Leads Duke to 1-1 Draw with Top-Ranked UNC

Sunday, October 8

Durham, N.C.

4 p.m.

Duke University

5-4-3, 1-2-3

North Carolina

9-0-5, 4-0-2

North Carolina

Duke

Photo by: Duke Athletics

Rader’s Last Minute Goal Leads Duke to 1-1 Draw with Top-Ranked UNC

10/8/2023 7:53:00 PM | Women's Soccer

Box Score Box Score (PDF)Photo Gallery Church Interview Rader Interview Freeman Interview

DURHAM – If there was a time when the Duke women's soccer team needed a confidence booster, it was on Sunday afternoon at Koskinen Stadium against top-ranked North Carolina. The Blue Devils received a penalty kick stop by goalkeeper Leah Freeman and then Kat Rader registered the equalizer with one minute remaining in the match to lead No. 22 Duke to a 1-1 draw in ACC action in front of 3,467 fans.

The draw moved the Blue Devils to 5-4-3, 1-2-3 in ACC action and gives Duke a much-needed point in the ACC standings. North Carolina is now 9-0-5 and 4-0-2 on the year.

How It Happened
•   Both teams featured early shots in the match, but Duke goalkeeper Leah Freeman saved a Tar Heel attempt in the second minute and Blue Devil senior Grace Watkins had a shot blocked in the ninth minute.
•   The Blue Devils then featured a pair of shots by Maggie Graham and Watkins that went wide and saved, respectively, in the 20th and 22nd minutes.
•   At the 39:48 mark, Duke had its best scoring chance of the half as Kat Rader and Graham displayed some excellent passing that left freshman Mia Minestrella open on the right side of the goal at the 10-yard mark. Minestrella right-footed attempt went just wide left of the far post.
•   Duke held a 5-4 shot advantage in the first half with two attempts on goal by Carina Lageyre and Watkins for the Blue Devils.
•   Minestrella opened the second half with another shot that went wide and then Duke had another great attempt, but Rader was called offside in the 51st minute.
•   At the 58:34 mark, North Carolina got on the board as Emerson Elgin found Emily Colton at the top of the box. Colton drove in and sent a shot at the goal that went off the crossbar and inside the net to give the Tar Heels a 1-0 lead.
•   North Carolina was awarded a penalty kick at the 78:16 mark and Avery Patterson's right-footed attempt was saved by Freeman as she made a diving stop to her left.
•   Duke started to press the Tar Heels late trying to register the equalizer. With a minute remaining in regulation, Watkins grabbed the ball in the middle of the field and found a streaking freshman Cameron Roller on the right flank. Roller placed a perfect cross into the box where Rader was there to head in her seventh goal of the season into the back left of the net to even the ledger, 1-1.

Notes
•   Duke senior goalkeeper Leah Freeman registered three saves in the first half and finished the match with four.
•   The 3,467 fans were a season high for Duke and marked the fifth-largest crowd in Duke women's soccer history.
•   Kat Rader totaled her 19th career goal and seventh on the season. She has now posted 11 of her 19 tallies against ACC foes.
•   For the match, Duke and North Carolina finished with 10 shots each.
•   The Blue Devils notched only the fifth tie in the overall series history with Duke and North Carolina, including the third all-time in Durham.
•   It marked the 14th time Duke has faced North Carolina with the Tar Heels as a top-ranked team and is the first time the two teams have tied.
•   The assist by Cameron Roller was the first of her career, while Grace Watkins added her fourth of her career and first this season.

Quotes
•   "I think that we came out better today and we really gave a 90-minute performance. Our team wanted to come in and turn it around from what happened on Thursday, and we really did that. We used every single person on the team – on the field or not. We need everyone and we really came out there. It was a gritty game and I think it was the first time we gave a 90-minute complete performance [this season]." – Duke senior Leah Freeman
•   "Really special for sure. I feel like as soon as Leah [Freeman] saved that PK – I thought when she made that save the momentum kind of came back towards us. I think it was Cam [Roller] sent in a great ball and I just tried to put my head on it. Really, really special moment to celebrate that with my team and to get a result is really important too." – Duke sophomore Kat Rader
•   "What an awesome game. What a crowd. Two really good teams battling out. Two things – I am really, really so proud of our team. It has been a tough stretch, its been a really tough stretch here and we haven't had one like this in a long time. They came to fight and their focus was laser sharp there. I am really proud of our staff – Kieran [Hall], Carla [Overbeck] and Lane [Davis]. I am just so proud of what they did and what they came up with the game plan. Some of the game plan we put in during our pregame talk. The girls really followed it out to the T. We are not out of the woods and have a lot of work to do. For that moment and for that 90 minutes, I thought we were awesome." – Duke head coach Robbie Church

Next Match
Duke will close a two-match homestand Friday, Oct. 13 as the Blue Devils host ninth-ranked Clemson at 5 p.m., live on ACC Network Extra. It will be a part of a doubleheader with the Duke men's soccer as the Blue Devils welcome NC State to Koskinen Stadium at 8 p.m.

To stay up to date with Blue Devils women's soccer, follow the team on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook by searching "DukeWSOC".

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