No. 15 Duke Opens Three-Game Road Swing at Virginia Tech

Saturday, March 21

Blacksburg, VA

12 PM

Duke University

Virginia Tech

March 17, 2026: The Duke Blue Devils Women’s Lacrosse team lost 12-14 against the Harvard University Crimson.

Photo by: Nat LeDonne / Duke Athletics

No. 15 Duke Opens Three-Game Road Swing at Virginia Tech

3/20/2026 10:04:00 AM | Women's Lacrosse

Live Stats Watch (ACCNX)Game Notes (PDF)

THE OPENING DRAW:

No. 15 Duke gets set to embark on a three-game road swing, starting with a trip to Blacksburg, Virginia for a Saturday, March 21 matinee at Virginia Tech. Opening draw is set for noon and the game will stream live on ACCNX.
The Blue Devils enter the weekend 6-4 overall and 3-2 in ACC play.
Saturday marks the 30th all-time meeting between Duke and Virginia Tech. The Blue Devils lead the series, 25-4, including a 10-1 record on the road.
Freshman midfielder Quinn Whitaker has wasted no time making her presence felt in her first season at Duke, as the rookie was recently tabbed No. 5 on Inside Lacrosse's Early Season Freshman Impact Rankings. Whitaker has started all 10 games for the Blue Devils this season and ranks third on the team with 24 goals.
She has notched six hat tricks this season -- including three in her last four outings -- and has scored two or more goals eight times. Whitaker currently ranks No. 2 in the ACC and 16th in the NCAA in shooting percentage (.600), while her 24 tallies are tied for fourth among freshmen nationally.
Junior Ellie White has been the Blue Devils' top draw taker this season. In 10 games, she has posted 99 draw controls and boasts an average of 9.90 per game (12th in the NCAA) -- both tops in the ACC.
White currently owns 199 draw controls -- fifth all-time on the Duke charts. She needs just one draw control to become the fifth Blue Devil all-time to eclipse 200 for their career, and only 27 more to move into the top four in program lore.

BY THE NUMBERS:

1 -- Ellie White's ACC ranking in total draw controls (99) and average draw controls per game (9.90)
2 -- Duke players that reached career milestones Tuesday versus Harvard: Avery Doran (50 goals) and Amanda Paci (50 caused turnovers)
4 -- Blue Devils ranked in the top 25 of the NCAA individual statistics. Eva Pronti is 10th in total assists and 16th in assists per game, Ellie White ranks 12th in draw controls per game, Quinn Whitaker is 16th in shot percentage and Ava Biancardi checks in at 21st in total goals
5 -- Consecutive hat tricks by redshirt junior Ava Biancardi
5 -- Rookie Quinn Whitaker's listing on the Inside Lacrosse Early Season Freshman Impact Rankings
6 -- Blue Devils with double-digit goals this season: Ava Biancardi (29), Avery Doran (27), Quinn Whitaker (24), Bella Goodwin (17), Eva Pronti (12), Sadie Stafford (10)
6 -- Duke players with 10-plus points this year: Eva Pronti (42), Avery Doran (41), Ava Biancardi (37), Bella Goodwin (32), Quinn Whitaker (26), Sadie Stafford (15)
6 -- Blue Devil rankings in the top 25 of the NCAA team statistics. Duke is fourth in draw controls per game, eighth in draw control percentage, 15th in total assists, 19th in points per game and shot percentage and 25th in scoring offense
12 -- Duke's Week 6 Inside Lacrosse ranking
15 –- Duke's Week 6 IWLCA ranking
17 -- Duke's Week 6 USA Lacrosse Magazine Ranking
86 -- Career assists by Eva Pronti, fourth all-time on the Duke charts
199 -- Career draw controls by Ellie White, fifth all-time on the Duke charts
370 -- Career victories for head coach Kerstin Kimel, with 366 of those wins coming at Duke

DUKE IN THE POLLS:

Duke is ranked in multiple top-25 polls. The Blue Devils currently check in at No. 15 in the Intercollegiate Women's Lacrosse Coaches Association (IWLCA) poll. Duke is also slotted No. 12 by Inside Lacrosse and 17th by USA Lacrosse Magazine.

WHITAKER MAKING AN IMPACT:

Duke freshman midfielder Quinn Whitaker has wasted no time making her presence felt in her first season at Duke, as the rookie was tabbed No. 5 on Inside Lacrosse's Early Season Freshman Impact Rankings.
The Wayne, Pennsylvania, standout has started all 10 games for the Blue Devils this season and ranks third on the team with 24 goals. She has notched six hat tricks this year -- including three in her last four outings -- and has scored two or more goals eight times.
Whitaker posted a career-best four tallies versus Johns Hopkins (2/15) earlier this season. Three of her four goals against the Blue Jays came in the final stanza, including back-to-back markers in the final 90 seconds of regulation to send the game into overtime.
She currently ranks No. 2 in the ACC and 16th in the NCAA in shooting percentage (.600), while her 24 tallies are currently tied for fourth among freshman nationally. In the Duke freshman record books, Whitaker is slotted 15th in goals (24) and 22nd in total points (26).

MILESTONE WATCH:

Head coach Kerstin Kimel is five wins shy of 375 career victories.
Caitlin Barrett is 15 points away from reaching 50 career points.
Ava Biancardi is four tallies away from 50 career goals.
Avery Doran is 12 dimes from 50 career assists and 12 points away from reaching the 100-point benchmark.
Bella Goodwin is 19 goals away from 100 career markers and 10 dimes away from 50 career assists.
Amanda Paci is eight ground balls away from 50.
Eva Pronti is 14 assists away from reaching 100 for her career.
Ellie White is one draw control away from 200 for her career.

DUKE VERSUS VIRGINIA TECH / SCOUTING THE HOKIES:

Saturday marks the 30th all-time meeting between Duke and Virginia Tech. The Blue Devils hold a 25-4 lead in the series, including a 10-1 record on the road.
Duke holds a 6-4 edge in its last 10 games against the Hokies. In last season's matchup in Durham (Mar. 29, 2025), the Blue Devils earned a 15-6 victory.
The Hokies are 7-4 overall and sit at 2-3 in league play. VT has won its last three, including a 15-9 win over ACC foe Florida State (3/14).
Lauren Render leads the offense with 21 goals to pace six double-figure scorers. Mia Pozzi is one of three Hokie players with double-digit assists. She heads the distribution efforts with 13 assists and also holds the team high in points with 32.
Zoe Stencil spearheads the Hokie defense with a team-best 19 caused turnovers and 17 ground balls. In the cage, Malie Follet owns 83 saves, a .444 save percentage and a 10.25 GAA.

UP NEXT:
The Blue Devils continue their road swing with a trip to Elon for a Mar. 23 non-conference tilt against the Phoenix. Opening draw is set for 5 p.m., with the game streaming on FloCollege.

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

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