No. 15 Duke Pulls Out 16-14 Victory Over Louisville

Saturday, March 14

Durham, N.C.

12 PM

Duke University

6-3, 3-2

Louisville

4-5, 1-4

Louisville

Duke

Photo by: Nat LeDonne / Duke Athletics

No. 15 Duke Pulls Out 16-14 Victory Over Louisville

3/14/2026 5:49:00 PM | Women's Lacrosse

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DURHAM, N.C. – Hat tricks by redshirt junior Ava Biancardi and sophomore Avery Doran helped No. 15 Duke (6-3, 3-2 ACC) grind out a 16-14 victory over Louisville (4-5, 1-4 ACC) in ACC women's lacrosse action Saturday afternoon.

The Blue Devils were extremely balanced offensively with eight different players finding the back of the cage. Biancardi earned her fourth consecutive hat trick as she led the offensive efforts for Duke with four goals, while Doran tallied three scores to notch her fourth hat trick in her last five games.

Junior Bella Goodwin, redshirt junior Eva Pronti and freshman Quinn Whitaker each netted two goals for the Blue Devils, with Pronti and Whitaker also chipping in four and two assists, respectively, to pace the distribution efforts. Sophomores Maddie MacDonald and Amanda Paci and junior Reese Woodworth rounded out the Duke scorers with one goal each.

The Blue Devil defense was solid all around with five players – senior Madison Beale, Paci, Pronti, sophomore Sadie Stafford and senior Sydney Smith – all logging a caused turnover. Beale and Pronti also tallied a team-high two ground balls apiece. Juniors Caitlin Barrett (5) and Ellie White (6) combined for 11 of Duke's 15 draw controls, while redshirt freshman Hope Schoudel collected six saves in the cage.

In a game that featured 16 total cards and made it hard for either side to get into much of a rhythm, the Blue Devils made enough plays to pull out the two-point victory.

HOW IT HAPPENED:

Pronti and Louisville's Grayce Kitchen traded tallies early on before a three-goal spurt by the Blue Devils gave them a 4-1 lead late in the opening frame. Scores by Paci and Whitaker – the latter off the assist from Stafford – bookended the spurt, with Doran adding a score via a free position shot.
The Cardinals broke their nearly nine-minute scoring drought with a goal at the 2:25 mark, but another free position conversion – this one from MacDonald – pushed the Duke advantage back to three with just under 90 seconds left in the first.
Duke tacked on a pair of goals in the second quarter. Pronti found Goodwin for a man-up strike at the 9:29 mark, before Goodwin found Biancardi less than a minute later for her second tally of the game.
Louisville was able to find its offensive footing in the second period, however, scoring five goals during the 15-minute session to send the teams into the half deadlocked at 7-7.
The Cardinals struck first in the second half, scoring less than a minute into the third to take an 8-7 edge. The visitor's lead would be short-lived though, as the Blue Devils answered with another three-goal run to reclaim the advantage – one they wouldn't relinquish for the remainder of the game.
Whitaker found the back of the net at the 12:18 mark to level the score at eight apiece, then connected with Pronti two minutes later for a strike to put Duke back in front. After earning another man-up opportunity, Doran took the feed from Goodwin and rocketed one past the Louisville goaltender to give the Blue Devils a 10-8 lead with six minutes left in the third.
The Cardinals scored late in the period to pull within one, but Doran quickly answered with another tally with 59 seconds left in the quarter, giving the home team an 11-9 edge heading into the fourth.
Duke and Louisville traded scores to open the fourth. The Blue Devils cashed in a man-up goal 43 seconds in – with Pronti feeding Goodwin for the score – while the Cardinals converted a free position opportunity.
Back-to-back Biancardi goals via MacDonald and Pronti dimes, respectively, pushed the Blue Devil advantage to four, 14-10, at the 8:21 mark.
The conference foes alternated scores over the ensuing four minutes of play, with Duke's goals coming via Woodworth and Biancardi markers – the latter assisted by Pronti.
Louisville continued to battle and made one final late push, adding two late goals to pull within a pair late in the fourth. The Blue Devils denied the Cardinals a chance to get any closer, forcing a turnover and running out the clock to lock down the 16-14 win.

NOTES:

Duke improves to 6-3 overall and 3-2 in ACC play. Louisville drops to 4-5 and 1-4 in conference action.
The Blue Devils improve to 12-2 all-time against the Cardinals and 6-0 when playing in Durham.
Head coach Kerstin Kimel earns her 370th career victory and 366th win at the helm of the Blue Devils.
Redshirt junior Ava Biancardi collected her fourth consecutive hat trick and fifth of the season overall with four goals against the Cardinals.
Sophomore Avery Doran notched her sixth hat trick of the year and fourth in her last five outings with five markers against Louisville. She needs just two more tallies to reach 50 career goals.
Redshirt junior Eva Pronti tallied a team-high six points with two goals and four assists. She also matched a career high with two ground balls.
With her six wins at the draw circle Saturday, junior Ellie White moved into sole possession of the No. 5 spot on the Duke career draw controls list. She needs just 38 draw controls to move into the top four in program lore.
Redshirt freshman goalie Hope Schoudel surpassed 50 career saves Saturday with six stops against Louisville.
Junior Reese Woodworth eclipsed 50 career draw controls after notching two against the Cardinals.

UP NEXT:
No. 15 Duke remains home, hosting Harvard in a midweek non-conference tilt Tuesday, Mar. 17. Opening draw is set for 5 p.m., with the game streaming live on ACCNX.

For more information on Duke women's lacrosse, follow the Blue Devils on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram by searching "DukeWLAX."

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