No. 16 Duke Hosts No. 1 Notre Dame Saturday at Noon

Saturday, April 18

Durham, N.C.

12 p.m.

Duke University

Notre Dame

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The back of the jerseys of for Duke men's lacrosse players. Numbers 91, 28, 36, 17

Photo by: Duke Athletics

No. 16 Duke Hosts No. 1 Notre Dame Saturday at Noon

4/17/2026 11:53:00 AM | Men's Lacrosse

Game Notes Watch Live Stats Heat Mitigation Map

Gameday Details

With temperatures Saturday reaching into the 90s and Koskinen Stadium sitting in full sun, Duke is putting into place a heat mitigation plan. For fans planning to attend the game there will be water and misting stations available as well as increased concession areas. Please see below for what you can bring into the stadium as well as additional amenities that will be provided.
- 1 factory sealed 20 oz bottle of water
- 2 stations with complimentary water, ice, and misting fans
- Additional pop-up concession stands where drinks will be available.
Duke will honor the memory of former Blue Devil Jimmy Regan Saturday with the annual Military Appreciation and Jimmy Regan game. In support of the Army Ranger Lead the Way Fund, the Blue Devils will hold a silent auction during the game for fans to bid on Duke lacrosse items. All proceeds support the Army Ranger Lead the Way Fund in honor of the late Jimmy Regan. Each of the items is signed by the current team. To learn more about Jimmy's story read here.
Starting bids for the items are: Helmets: $200 | Jerseys: $150 | T-Shirts: $50.

The Opening Faceoff

Duke resumes ACC play Saturday against No. 1 Notre Dame. The game is the final regular season home game for the Blue Devils. Faceoff is set for 12 p.m. on ESPNU.
The Blue Devils are 8-3 and ranked No. 16 in the USILA poll and 15th by Inside Lacrosse and 17th by USA Lacrosse magazine following the narrow 9-7 loss to Cornell. Notre Dame is the consensus No. 1 team after its 10-5 win over North Carolina last Saturday.
Junior Benn Johnston paces the offense with 32 goals and seven assists for 39 points. Max Sloat is having a solid year out of the midfield with 27 goals and 32 points overall. Freshman Michael Ortlieb has added 18 goals and 12 assists for 30 points on attack, while Brady Scioletti has played both midfield and attack and owns 19 goals and six assists. Thomas Mencke has a team-high 15 assists.
The Blue Devils' have a stalwart defense and are holding teams to 8.55 goals and to just 27-percent shooting. Charlie Johnson (15), Henry Bard (13), Will Pedicano (12) and Aidan Maguire (12) have combined for 52 caused turnovers and 86 ground balls. Johnson and Bard lead the close defense off the ground with 20 and 19 ground balls, respectively. In goal, Patrick Jameison has a 7.90 goals against average and a .508 save percentage. Cal Girard anchors the faceoff duties, going 112-of-187 (.599). Ben McCarthy is an outstanding second option at the dot at 43-of-80 (.538). They pick up the ground ball on 65 percent of their draw wins.

By the Numbers
36 - Percent of Duke's goals scored by the freshman trio of Kyle Colsey, Michael Ortlieb and Brady Scioletti
1-3 - Duke's record against Notre Dame when the Fighting Irish are ranked No. 1
8-12 - The Blue Devils' record against No. 1 teams under John Danowski
8 - The lowest ranked Duke team to beat a No. 1-ranked team during Danowski's tenure
12 - Caused turnovers by freshman LSM Will Pedicano - tying Luke Duprey for the most by a Duke rookie since the NCAA started tracking the statistic in 2010
.757 - Duke's opponent clearing percentage this season, ranking first in the ACC and fifth nationally
.520 - Duke's man-up offense percentage - first in the ACC and fifth nationally
.471 - Notre Dame's man-down defense, last in the ACC and 69 of 75 teams nationally
.599 - Junior Cal Girard's faceoff percentage this season, improving from 43 percent as a freshman and 47 percent last season
.589 - Tyler Spano's faceoff percentage against league-leading Brady Wambach of North Carolina last weekend, winning 10-of-17

Series History

Duke and Notre Dame face each other for the 35th time overall and for the eighth time since 2022. The Fighting Irish have won seven straight with the last time the two teams playing each other in Durham coming in 2022 - a narrow 16-15 Notre Dame win.
The Blue Devils are 5-6 against Notre Dame in Durham and with the most recent victory being a 13-12 overtime triumph in 2021. Five of the past 10 matchups have been decided by three or fewer goals.

Against Ranked Opponents

Under John Danowski, Duke is 145-80 (.622) versus USILA top-20 opponents. Saturday's game will be Duke's sixth against a top-20 foe this season and Notre Dame's seventh. The Irish are 5-1 versus top-20 opponents.
Duke defeated then No. 18 Saint Joseph's (12-6) and No. 14 Denver (8-7) before dropping a hard-fought 16-15 decision at No. 7 Syracuse and suffering a 14-10 loss to No. 16 Virginia and 9-7 setback to No. 7 Cornell. The Blue Devils' highest ranked RPI win is Saint Joseph's (22). A victory over No. 1 Notre Dame would put the Blue Devils at 1-3 versus the RPI top 10.

Against No. 1 Since 2007

Under John Danowski, Duke is 8-12 against the nation's No. 1. The last time Duke defeated the top team in the country was March 21, 2023, with a 16-14 win over Virginia. Duke's lowest ranking in a win over a top-ranked team is No. 8 - also a win over Virginia in 2009.
Since 2007, Duke has faced a No. 1 Notre Dame squad four times. The Blue Devils are 1-3 in those matchups, beating the Irish 13-8 in the 2015 ACC Semifinals.

Back to Back to Back Losses

Under John Danowski, Duke has fared well after losses. Since 2007, the Blue Devils have lost consecutive games just 12 times, including twice in 2011. Duke's longest losing streak under Danowski is three games in 2015. The last time the Blue Devils lost more than three straight was a five-game stretch in 2004.
Duke has gone 1-3 in a four-game span just four times - 2010, 2013, 2015, 2016.

Second Half Struggles

Duke has struggled offensively in the second half in the past four games, being outscored 24-12. The Blue Devils have failed to score a goal twice in the fourth quarter - a win over Denver and a loss to Cornell.
The third quarters have been the most detrimental to the Blue Devils in the four-game stretch. Duke's foes are outscoring the Blue Devils 15-8 in the third quarter in these past four games.

What Gives?

Saturday's game features a good matchup at the faceoff dot between Duke's Cal Girard (.599) and Notre Dame's Tyler Spano (.590). Spano is coming off a career performance against Brady Wambach of North Carolina, while Girard is having the best year of his career.
Defensively, Duke will look to hold a consistent Notre Dame offense to single digits for the fourth time this season, while the Blue Devils' offense tries to best the Fighting Irish's No. 4 defense.

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