Late surge propels No. 22 West Virginia past resilient Duquesne, 2-0

It was a regional clash between Atlantic 10 and Big 12 in Morgantown on Sunday afternoon as Duquesne battled No. 22-ranked West Virginia down to the wire before the Mountaineers capitalized late for a 2-0 non-conference victory.

The Dukes showcased disciplined structural defending to hold off WVU’s attack through 75-plus scoreless minutes, limiting clear chances despite being outshot 13-3 and conceding seven corner kicks.

The deadlock finally broke in the 77th minute,  when Mountaineer sophomore Sophia Nickel finished a quick sequence off a feed from redshirt sophomore Alexis Ré to notch her third game-winner of the young season.

West Virginia doubled its lead five minutes later via a set piece outside the box: senior Anna Hauer’s free kick bounced off the Duquesne wall directly into the path of redshirt junior defender Gianna Koss—a Western PA native and former Pine-Richland standout and Kentucky transfer—who slammed home the rebound to secure the insurance tally.

Despite two saves from WVU keeper and one of this past summer’s Riveters’ heroes, Bailey Herfurth, the Mountaineers’ late surges proved decisive as they sealed their second shutout and improved to 3-0.  Duquesne is now 1W-2L-0D to begin the season. 

Next up for the Dukes, they’ll host Akron, on Thursday, at 7 p.m. at Rooney Field.

Pittsburgh Soccer Now