Pirates Head South to Kick Off Season at Duke

SOUTH ORANGE, N.J. – To kick off the 2026 season, the Seton Hall men's soccer team will travel down to Durham, North Carolina, to take on the Duke Blue Devils at Freeman Field inside Koskinen Stadium on Thursday.

Match time is scheduled for 8 p.m. and will be broadcast live on ESPN+.

SCOUTING DUKE

Duke finished 10-4-6 last season, fourth overall in the ACC, with a 4-2-2 record in conference play.
After entering the NCAA Tournament as an at-large team, the Blue Devils defeated both FDU and No. 3-seeded Princeton before falling to No. 14-seeded Akron in the third round, 2-0.
Despite retaining 2025 All-ACC Second Team forward Ulfur Bjornsson and All-Freshman midfielder Max Simpson, Duke has lost many high-impact players from last year's roster. First Team All-ACC midfielder Kenan Hot, who led the team in goals and points last season, graduated and was selected in the MLS SuperDraft. Alongside Hot, both assist leaders for the Blue Devils, Alessandro Arlotti and Drew Kerr, as well as All-ACC Second Team defender Kamran Acito, also graduated from the program.
In net, the Blue Devils are also in search of who their next netminder will be this season. After a superb senior season with a 0.86 GAA by Eryk Dymora, the team will be deciding among four goalkeepers who have combined for 118 minutes across their eight seasons in college soccer.

SERIES HISTORY

Seton Hall and Duke last met in 1988 in a match that saw the Blue Devils hand The Hall a 4-0 loss.
This will be the third matchup between the two programs, the first of which came in 1939.
- Dating back to 1939, Blue Devils are the eighth unique team, among schools that still exist, the men's soccer program ever played.
Seton Hall is 0-1-1 all-time against the Blue Devils.

PRESEASON HONORS

After earning both All-BIG EAST Second Team and United Soccer Coaches All-East Region Second Team honors in 2025, forward Mikkel Lejbowicz and midfielder Til Kauschke have collected multiple preseason honors. Lejbowicz was named to the Preseason All-BIG EAST Team and the MAC Hermann Trophy Forwards to Watch list. Kauschke, meanwhile, made the Midfielders to Watch list, was named Preseason All-BIG EAST and was named the Preseason BIG EAST Midfielder of the Year.