DURHAM, N.C. (Aug. 16, 2023) – The West Virginia University women’s soccer team opens its 28th season of competition on the road, as it takes on No. 4 Duke in Durham, North Carolina, on Thursday, Aug. 17. Action inside the Blue Devils’ Koskinen Stadium is set for 7 p.m. ET.
Evan Budrovich and Brian Hand will have the call of Thursday’s season opener on ACC Network Extra. Live stats from the match also are available at WVUsports.com.
Entering her 28th season as the program’s only head coach, Nikki Izzo-Brown has led the Mountaineers to a 383-130-69 overall record. WVU returns 18 letterwinners off the 2022 squad, as well as eight starters. Eight newcomers are set to join the team this fall, including seven freshmen and one transfer.
Fifth-year senior goalkeeper Kayza Massey was named to the 2023 Preseason All-Big 12 Team, her first career honor after being selected as the 2022 Big 12 Co-Goalkeeper of the Year a season ago. WVU returns three of five players who earned All-Big 12 accolades last fall, including Massey, who was recognized on the first team. Additionally, senior midfielder AJ Rodriguez and junior forward Dilary Heredia-Beltran were selected to the second team.
West Virginia was picked to finish fourth in the 2023 Big 12 Preseason Poll, as selected by the league’s 14 head coaches. The 2023 campaign marks the inaugural season for conference newcomers BYU, Cincinnati, Houston and UCF. The Mountaineers will meet Cincinnati, Houston and UCF this season.
Thursday’s matchup marks the seventh meeting all-time between West Virginia and Duke, as the Mountaineers hold a 3-2-1 advantage in the series. West Virginia also boasts a 1-0-1 lead in games played in Durham. WVU and Duke are set to square off for the first time since the 2020-21 season, when the Mountaineers claimed a 3-2 win over the Blue Devils in Morgantown.
Robbie Church is in his 23rd season as the head coach at Duke, with an overall mark of 287-140-63 in his time in Durham. In 2022, Duke recorded a 15-5-3 campaign and earned another trip to the NCAA Tournament Quarterfinals. The Blue Devils also capped the year with a 6-2-2 mark in ACC play and advanced to the ACC Tournament Semifinals.
Duke returns five starters and 15 letterwinners this season, while welcoming the No. 6 incoming class in the nation. Sophomore Kat Rader was named to the 2023 Preseason All-ACC Team after being named the ACC Freshman of the Year at the end of the 2022 campaign.
For more information on the Mountaineers, follow @WVUWomensSoccer on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
Evan Budrovich and Brian Hand will have the call of Thursday’s season opener on ACC Network Extra. Live stats from the match also are available at WVUsports.com.
Entering her 28th season as the program’s only head coach, Nikki Izzo-Brown has led the Mountaineers to a 383-130-69 overall record. WVU returns 18 letterwinners off the 2022 squad, as well as eight starters. Eight newcomers are set to join the team this fall, including seven freshmen and one transfer.
Fifth-year senior goalkeeper Kayza Massey was named to the 2023 Preseason All-Big 12 Team, her first career honor after being selected as the 2022 Big 12 Co-Goalkeeper of the Year a season ago. WVU returns three of five players who earned All-Big 12 accolades last fall, including Massey, who was recognized on the first team. Additionally, senior midfielder AJ Rodriguez and junior forward Dilary Heredia-Beltran were selected to the second team.
West Virginia was picked to finish fourth in the 2023 Big 12 Preseason Poll, as selected by the league’s 14 head coaches. The 2023 campaign marks the inaugural season for conference newcomers BYU, Cincinnati, Houston and UCF. The Mountaineers will meet Cincinnati, Houston and UCF this season.
Thursday’s matchup marks the seventh meeting all-time between West Virginia and Duke, as the Mountaineers hold a 3-2-1 advantage in the series. West Virginia also boasts a 1-0-1 lead in games played in Durham. WVU and Duke are set to square off for the first time since the 2020-21 season, when the Mountaineers claimed a 3-2 win over the Blue Devils in Morgantown.
Robbie Church is in his 23rd season as the head coach at Duke, with an overall mark of 287-140-63 in his time in Durham. In 2022, Duke recorded a 15-5-3 campaign and earned another trip to the NCAA Tournament Quarterfinals. The Blue Devils also capped the year with a 6-2-2 mark in ACC play and advanced to the ACC Tournament Semifinals.
Duke returns five starters and 15 letterwinners this season, while welcoming the No. 6 incoming class in the nation. Sophomore Kat Rader was named to the 2023 Preseason All-ACC Team after being named the ACC Freshman of the Year at the end of the 2022 campaign.
For more information on the Mountaineers, follow @WVUWomensSoccer on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
