Duquesne hangs tough, but falls to WVU, 1-0, in Morgantown

Behind a third-minute goal from fifth-year senior defender Maddie Moreau, the West Virginia University women’s soccer team collected a 1-0 win over Duquesne on Sunday afternoon at Dick Dlesk Soccer Stadium in Morgantown.

Despite being outshot 11-4 in the first half and 22-6 for the game, the Dukes (1-3) defense held strong against WVU (2-2) by keeping it a one goal match but could not get the offense going.

Maddy Neundorfer stopped five shots and played a full 90 minutes being a key factor keeping the game close till the end.

Mackenzie Muir accounted for half the Dukes shot attempts with three and put two on frame.

Moreau netted her second goal of the season just over two minutes into the match to give WVU (2-2) the 1-0 edge. Junior forward Dilary Heredia-Beltran assisted the score – her second in as many games – with a ball to Moreau inside the box to set her up for the score. Despite five more shots on goal for the Mountaineers throughout the duration of the match, the score stood from there to help West Virginia earn its second win of the campaign.

After Moreau’s goal at the 2:28 mark, Duquesne found a rhythm defensively and challenged the Mountaineers the rest of the way. It was a chippy contest, with 18 total fouls between the two squads and three yellow cards shown to the Dukes.

WVU led Duquesne in every statistical category on Sunday, including 22-6 in shots, 6-2 in shots on goal and 12-1 in corner kicks. Fifth-year senior goalkeeper Kayza Massey collected a pair of saves, while Duquesne keeper Maddy Neundorfer stopped five Mountaineer shots. Moreau led the offense with her second career game-winning goal, while Heredia-Beltran also tallied five shots, including two on goal, and the game-winning assist.

With the win, WVU remains unbeaten all-time against the Dukes with an 11-0-2 advantage in the all-time series. The Mountaineers also move to 11-0-1 in games played in Morgantown. Of note, Moreau’s third-minute goal marked the 16th-fastest goal scored in program history.

Duquesne will look to rebound at Pitt in the Women’s edition of The City Game on Thursday starting at 7 p.m.