No. 6 Notre Dame secures 3-2 statement win over No. 3 ranked Duke

SOUTH BEND, IN – It was a top-10 matchup at Alumni Stadium on Thursday evening as the No. 6 Notre Dame Fighting Irish (7-0-1, 2-0) defeated the No. 3 Duke Blue Devils (6-2-1, 1-2) in a 3-2 ACC victory.

Sophomore Izzy Engle, sophomore Annabelle Chukwu, and senior Laney Matriano each netted a goal for the Irish. Engle is tied for a conference-best eight goals so far on the year with Chukwu right behind her at seven goals.

The Irish defense held the Blue Devils to nine shots with just three shots on goal.

The last top-five win in the regular season for the Irish was Oct. 9 2022 as Notre Dame defeated No. 3 Florida State in a 4-0 shutout at home.

It was a physical battle between the top-10 programs to start, but who other than ACC goal leader Izzy Engle to put the Irish on the board first in the 24th minute of play.

IZZY ENGLE GIVES IRISH THEIR FIRST GOAL OF THE NIGHT 🔥#NCAASoccer x 🎥 ACCNX / @NDSoccer

pic.twitter.com/EK26LHX85I

— NCAA Soccer (@NCAASoccer) September 18, 2025

A cross from Carolyn Calzada eventually fell at the feet of Chukwu in the box, who quickly tapped it just feet ahead where Engle found the back of the net on a sneaky right-footed shot to the bottom right corner of the net.

It was just three minutes later that Laney Matriano got in on the scoring action. The senior midfielder was able to get a shot off between a pair of Blue Devil defenders about 25 yards out with some shifty footwork for a beautiful goal to put Notre Dame up 2-0 in the 27th minute.

MAKE THAT 2 FOR THE IRISH 🙌#NCAASoccer x 🎥 ACCNX / @NDSoccer

pic.twitter.com/45H99Uv3oe

— NCAA Soccer (@NCAASoccer) September 18, 2025

The Irish led 2-0 at the half, but knew the next 45 minutes were going to be a battle.

In the 64th minute, Engle found Charlie Codd at the top of the box, who then delivered the pass to Chukwu on the right wing. Chukwu’s crafty footwork allowed for the quick shot as she found the back left corner of the net for a 3-0 Irish advantage.

🗣️ 𝐆𝐎𝐀𝐋 𝐈𝐑𝐈𝐒𝐇!

ANNABELLE CHUKWU PUTS THE IRISH UP 3-0! #GoIrish☘️ | 📺 @accnetwork pic.twitter.com/eVbd1gDzJH

— Notre Dame Women’s Soccer (@NDSoccer) September 19, 2025

Duke wasn’t going anywhere as they responded with a quick goal to the top shelf in the 65th minute to make it 3-1.

Just 10 minutes later in the 75th minute, the Blue Devil offense would strike again on a go-ahead ball delivered from midfield to make it a one-goal game.

The Irish battled to the end, holding the No.3 Blue Devils scoreless in the last 15 minutes of play to secure the top-5 win at Alumni Stadium.

The Irish are back in action next week as they host the No. 18 North Carolina Tar Heels at Alumni Stadium at 6 p.m. The match will be broadcasted on ACC Network.