No. 17 Duke, No. 4 Syracuse to Clash in Saturday ACC Tilt

Saturday, April 4

Durham, N.C.

4 PM

Duke University

Syracuse

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March 23, 2026: The Duke Blue Devils Women’s Lacrosse team wins 17-14 against the Elon University Phoenix

Photo by: Nat LeDonne / Duke Athletics

No. 17 Duke, No. 4 Syracuse to Clash in Saturday ACC Tilt

4/3/2026 12:56:00 PM | Women's Lacrosse

Live Stats Watch (ACCN)Game Notes (PDF)

THE OPENING DRAW:

The 17th-ranked Blue Devils enter the home stretch of the regular season. Duke plays its final three games against ranked foes, starting with an Apr. 4 matchup versus No. 4 Syracuse. Opening draw is set for 4 p.m., with the game airing live on ACC Network.
Duke and Syracuse meet for the 12th time Saturday. The Orange hold a 9-2 lead in the all-time series, including a 4-1 mark in Durham.
Winners of its last three games, Duke comes in at 9-4 overall and tied for third in the ACC standings with a 5-2 ledger in league play.
Following a rocky, 0-3 start to the year, Syracuse enters the contest on a 10-game win streak and sports a 10-3 overall record. The Orange are also 5-2 in ACC action - tied for third with Duke.
Redshirt junior Eva Pronti was tabbed a Nike Lacrosse Midseason Media Third Team All-American by Inside Lacrosse Apr. 1. Pronti has been an instrumental component to the Duke offensive attack this season. She has started all 13 games and leads the squad with 59 points on 18 goals and a team-high 41 assists.
The Blue Devils are led offensively by Ava Biancardi with 38 goals, while Avery Doran (35), Quinn Whitaker (30) and Bella Goodwin (28) follow closely behind. Eva Pronti (18) and Sadie Stafford (13) round out Duke's double-digit scorers.
Ellie White has been the Blue Devils' top draw taker this season and shown that she's a force to be reckoned with. In 13 games, she has posted 140 draw controls for an average of 10.77 per game (fifth in the NCAA) -- both tops in the ACC. Her 140 wins at the draw circle are currently No. 6 on the Duke single-season charts.

BY THE NUMBERS:

1 -- Ellie White's ACC ranking in total draw controls (140) and average draw controls per game (10.77)
2 -- Duke players on the 2026 Tewaaraton Award Watch List in Bella Goodwin and Eva Pronti
4 -- Blue Devils ranked in the top 25 of the NCAA individual statistics. Eva Pronti is fourth in assists, eighth in assists per game and 14th in points, Ellie White ranks fifth in draw controls per game, Avery Doran is 17th in shot percentage and Ava Biancardi checks in at 23rd in goals
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 (38), Avery Doran (35), Quinn Whitaker (30), Bella Goodwin (28), Eva Pronti (18) and Sadie Stafford (13)
7 -- Duke players with double figure points this year: Eva Pronti (59), Ava Biancardi (49), Avery Doran (49), Bella Goodwin (49), Quinn Whitaker (35), Sadie Stafford (22) and Caitlin Barrett (10)
7 -- Blue Devil rankings in the top 25 of the NCAA team statistics. Duke is fourth in draw controls per game, ninth in assists, 10th in draw control percentage and points per game, 12th in shot percentage, 14th in scoring offense and 16th in shots on goal per game
17 –- Duke's Week 7 IWLCA ranking
18 -- Duke's Week 7 Inside Lacrosse ranking
20 -- Duke's Week 7 USA Lacrosse Magazine Ranking
99 -- Career assists by Eva Pronti, fourth all-time on the Duke charts
240 -- Career draw controls by Ellie White, fourth all-time in Duke lore
373 -- Career victories for head coach Kerstin Kimel, with 369 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. 17 in the Intercollegiate Women's Lacrosse Coaches Association (IWLCA) poll. Duke is also ranked 18th by Inside Lacrosse and 20th by USA Lacrosse Magazine.

MILESTONE WATCH:

Head coach Kerstin Kimel is two wins shy of 375 career victories.
Caitlin Barrett is 12 points away from reaching 50 career points.
Avery Doran is 12 dimes from 50 career assists and four points away from reaching the 100-point benchmark.
Bella Goodwin is eight goals away from 100 career markers and four dimes away from 50 career assists.
Amanda Paci needs two ground balls to reach 50 as a Blue Devil.
Eva Pronti is one assists away from reaching 100 for her career and 16 points from 150 career points.
Ellie White is 10 draw controls away from 250 as a Blue Devil.

DUKE VERSUS SYRACUSE / SCOUTING THE ORANGE:

Duke and Syracuse meet for the 12th time Saturday. The Orange hold a 9-2 lead in the all-time series, including a 4-1 mark in Durham.
After getting off to a rocky 0-3 start to the season, Syracuse enters the game on a 10-game win streak sporting a 10-3 overall record and a 5-2 ledger in ACC games.
Molly Guzik is the team's top goal scorer with 33 markers on the year, pairing that with 10 assists for a team-high 43 points. Mackenzie Rich leads the distribution efforts with 17 assists.
On the defensive end, the Orange are paced by Izzy Lahah (35 caused turnovers, 34 ground balls) and Coco Vandiver (32 caused turnovers, 23 ground balls. Daniella Guyette has started all 13 games in net for Syracuse and owns 77 saves, a save percentage of .475 and a 6.88 goals against average.

UP NEXT:
Duke continues its gauntlet to close the season with the second of three consecutive games against ranked opponents. The Blue Devils hit the road Apr. 11 for an ACC tilt at No. 11 Clemson. Opening draw is set for noon and the game will be streamed 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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