They say the devil is in the details. But in Durham, the Blue Devils are in the details—and numbers.
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Duke football (3-1) defeated Kansas Saturday in a hard-fought matchup that saw the home side pull away in the second half. Going into the game, the Blue Devils had a good deal of momentum, winning twice consecutively since being upset in the opener by Charlotte. Showing up in a big way for the Blue Devils was quarterback Gunnar Holmberg, who led the offense to a huge day on the field.
Holmberg stole the show, rushing for four touchdowns—tying the program's single-game record—while also passing for 328 yards. In every sense, Holmberg turned in his most impressive performance of the season, earning plenty of new career-bests in the process.
On what was his most successful day yet as Duke's quarterback, Holmberg added an additional achievement: he became one of just five players in the past 15 seasons of college football to throw for 300 yards and rush for four touchdowns against a Power Five opponent, per GoDuke. Holmberg is the first to do so since 2016, with the other four being Nick Fitzgerald, Collin Klein and Heisman Trophy winners Tim Tebow and Lamar Jackson.
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In No. 20 Duke field hockey’s (4-5) hard-earned triumph against William & Mary Saturday, the Blue Devils inched one step closer to a big milestone: they now find themselves three victories shy of recording head coach Pam Bustin's 300th career win. The Blue Devils have seven more regular-season opportunities to get to that point, yet six of those opponents rank ahead of them, including No. 5 North Carolina and No. 10 Boston College.
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There are only two ACC men's soccer teams that remain undefeated in conference play. No. 4 Duke (6-1-0, 3-0-0 in the ACC) stayed among that duo Saturday night in a late-game win against Syracuse. The Blue Devils are now on a three-game win streak against a string of ACC opponents that includes then-No. 6 Virginia Tech. The Blue Devils face the other undefeated team Friday as No. 14 Louisville travels to Durham.
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Junior Chloe Beck was brilliant Sunday as she went 2-0 at the final day of the Fall Ranked Spotlight in Cary, N.C. In doubles, Beck partnered with promising freshman Emma Jackson in a 6-4 win against Miami’s No. 31 Diana Khodan and Isabella Pfennig. Beck also topped Ohio State’s No. 7 Irina Cantos in a third-set tiebreaker in her second match of the day. The win against Cantos marks Beck’s third win against a top-ten opponent throughout her time at Duke, with only a singular loss recorded during that span.
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No. 4 Duke women’s soccer was handed its first defeat of the season Thursday night at the hands of then-No. 7 Virginia. Duke put up a strong fight, recording nine shots including senior Mackenzie Pluck’s nearly successful boot from 30 yards out. In a tough loss that likely came as a surprise to fans and players alike, the game also marks the Blue Devils’ (7-1-1, 1-1-1 in the ACC) first ACC loss, as well as their first regulation loss in the 13 games played since March 27.
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