Duke Travels to Notre Dame for Regular-Season Finale

DURHAM, N.C. - Duke men's soccer closes the regular season on the road, traveling to Notre Dame for a Halloween Eve clash. The Blue Devils enter the regular-season finale looking to continue their late momentum, after securing four points in their last two ACC matches with a 3-0 victory over Virginia and a hard-fought draw, 2-2, versus rival, and 16th-ranked, North Carolina.

Duke (7-8-1, 1-5-1 ACC) and the Fighting Irish (6-5-3, 3-4-0 ACC) kick off at Alumni Stadium at 7 p.m., with the match streamed live on ACC Network Extra.

MATCHUP NOTES

Duke trails the Fighting Irish in the all-time series, 6-11-2 but has won two of the last three meetings. The two teams closed out the 2024 regular season in Durham, with Duke claiming a 4-0 victory, in the most recent match between the two sides.
The Blue Devils are seeking their first outright victory in South Bend, having gone 0-7-2 when playing Notre Dame in true road games, with eight of those nine total matches at Notre Dame occurring during the regular season.

LAST TIME OUT

In its last time out, Duke secured a conference point with a 2-2 draw against No. 16 North Carolina.
Ethan Congleton recorded a first-half brace to pace the Blue Devils' offense, beginning with a penalty-kick goal followed by a right-footed strike right before halftime.
Congleton's classmate, Jack Ottley, was credited with an assist on the second goal, with the pair of freshman now tied for the team lead in points, with 21 apiece.

OTTLEY AND CONGLETON LEAD THE WAY

Ottley leads the Blue Devils in assists, with seven, while Congleton is one ahead of Ottley in goals, with a team-high eight tallies.
Ottley has scored in four of the last six matches and has 10 points across that same span.
With the 21 points from both Congleton and Ottley, Duke has a pair of freshmen inside the top five for points across the entire league and the duo lead all ACC freshmen in that category.

WORKING THROUGH INJURIES

The combined absences in Duke's XI adds up to nearly 7,800 cumulative minutes and more than 86 full games, but the Blue Devils returned two key pieces in the match against North Carolina and hope to continue get healthier entering the postseason. Duke's backline has been hit the hardest, with multiple anticipated returning starters, along with their subsequent replacements, missing from the XI at various points this season.
Preston Zabinko has been sidelined all season, while Jamie Kabuusu made his 2026 debut against Queens, played 79 minutes and tallied an assist, before he exited with an injury in the next match that kept him sidelined until Friday night against North Carolina. Maxwell Simpson and Josh Poulson both picked up knocks during the preseason; Poulson debuted four matches into the regular season and has made four starts; Simpson was forced out of his season debut, at NC State, after just 23 minutes, due to another injury.
Thomas Vold has been fully healthy and available for selection for just three matches, while Ian Hecker, who subsequently embraced a starting role, missed the Georgetown and Wake Forest matches and has been unavailable sice the Howard match. Key striker Ulfur Bjornsson and midfielder Logan Moniz have been the key missing pieces in the offensive third, with Bjornsson returning against UNC after an eight-game absence and Moniz sitting out the last seven matches.
In the various places of injured returners, several key replacements have emerged. Defender Tucker Smith has made six starts, Julius Suber has moved from the midfield to the back line, and forward Adrian Byasiima has helped fill in on defense as well. Prior to his own injury, Moniz, another star freshman, had settled into a consistent role in Duke's midfield, starting in all nine of his appearances, playing nearly 700 minutes and tallying five points from three assists and a goal.

KICKS FOR KIDS

The Duke men's and women's soccer programs have partnered with Duke Children's to launch the Kicks for Kids initiative in support of Pets at Duke, an impactful service of the Duke Cancer Patient Support Program.
Pets at Duke brings specially trained therapy dogs to patients receiving care in the hospital and clinics, providing comfort and companionship during their treatment.
Kicks for Kids pledges, based on combined key stats recorded by both the Duke men's and women's programs, have already raised nearly $10,000

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Players Mentioned

Ulfur Bjornsson

Adrian Byasiima

Ethan Congleton

Ian Hecker

Jamie Kabuusu

Logan Moniz

Jack Ottley

Josh Poulson

Maxwell Simpson

Tucker Smith

Julius Suber

Thomas Vold

Preston Zabinko

Duke information