No. 3 Duke Opens Season with 3-1 Win at Southern California

Wednesday, August 12

Los Angeles, CA

9 p.m.

Duke University

1-0-0, 0-0-0

Southern California

0-1-0, 0-0-0

Team	1	2	Final F
Duke	3	0	3
USC	0	1	1

Wolmen's Soccer defeats Southern Cal 3-1

Photo by: Peter Raider, Duke Athletics

No. 3 Duke Opens Season with 3-1 Win at Southern California

8/12/2026 11:56:00 PM | Women's Soccer

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LOS ANGELES, Calif. – Powered by three goals over the first 31 minutes of the contest, the third-ranked Duke women's soccer team opened the 2026 season with a 3-1 victory over Southern California Wednesday evening inside Rawlinson Stadium in Los Angeles.

Duke senior Mia Minestrella scored the third-quickest goal in program history just 1:18 into the match, while sophomore Avery Oder added a second at the 12:04 mark. Junior Katie Shea Collins made the score 3-0 only 30:25 into the contest and the Blue Devils came away with a 3-1 victory.

The Blue Devils brought 11 players to their home state of California with Minestrella and Oder scoring in their return.

Duke improved to 1-0 on the season, while USC dropped to 0-1.

How It Happened

Duke jumped out to a quick start scoring 1:18 into the match to go ahead, 1-0. Redshirt junior Sam Courtwright sent a pass from the midfield to junior Katie Shea Collins on the left side of the pitch. Collins drove in and sent a perfect cross to a wide-open senior Mia Minestrella for the opening goal.
Duke continued to put the pressure on the Trojans and added a second goal at the 12:04 mark to go ahead, 2-0. Courtwright and sophomore Avery Oder had a great give-and-go just outside the box. After a great pass from Courtwright, Oder drove toward the 6-yard spot and finished inside the right post.
The Blue Devils turned in the third-quickest pair of goals in Duke history, scoring twice in the first 12:04 of the match.
Duke made the score 3-0 at the 30:25 mark as sophomore Jocelyn Travers sent a long pass down the right side to Oder. A product of Calabasas, California, Oder took the pass and drove into the box before crossing an excellent ball in front of the goal to a streaking Collins for the left-footed tap-in.
The three goals in the first 30:25 of the game were the fifth-quickest in Duke history.
The Blue Devils dominated the first half, holding a 6-1 advantage in shots, with the lone attempt by USC coming in the last minute and going wide. Oder registered a team-high two attempts.
Southern California controlled the opening part of the second half and eventually scored its first goal in the 63rd minute when Eleanor Morrissey found the back of the net to cut into the lead, 3-1.
In the 70th minute, Oder used her left foot to send a cross to the head of Minestrella, but the attempt was saved.
Shortly after freshman Rylie McLanahan narrowly missed registering her first goal as she toe-poked an attempt, but the ball went off the left post and was saved.
The Blue Devils had a stretch with five shots in a row, but could not get anything across the line.
Duke closed the match with a 13-5 shot advantage.

Notes

Over Duke's last six games dating back to 2025, Mia Minestrella has scored a goal in five of them. She has totaled 31 goals over the last three years. Minestrella's 31 career goals now rank tied for eighth on Duke's all-time charts with Michelle Cooper (31).
Avery Oder scored in the first half of the season opener for the second year in a row (Penn State in 2025). She finished with a goal and an assist on the night.
Katie Shea Collins totaled her 24th career goal and her first as a Blue Devil.
Sam Courtwright turned in an impressive Duke debut with two assists.
Molly Vapensky made her first collegiate start in goal for the Blue Devils. She played the entire 90 minutes and finished with zero saves.
Two Duke rookies – Yuna Marui and Natalie Chudowsky – started their first collegiate games in the season opener. They became the fifth and sixth freshmen to start their first collegiate match under head coach Kieran Hall. They are the 66th and 67th Duke freshmen in program history to do so.
Sam Bodensteiner made her second collegiate start on the defensive end and the first since Oct. 27, 2024, at Wake Forest.
Freshman Rylee McLanahan led Duke with three shots on the night in her Blue Devil debut.

Quotes

"So proud of the group. I mean, we flew from North Carolina yesterday. For us to put on a performance like that. I am really proud of the group. You can see the spirit and hunger of the group. We came out flying, ready to really make a statement tonight. There were times where it wasn't the cleanest and prettiest, but grit was fantastic."-- Duke head coach Kieran Hall

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