Tristan Huyett | staff writer |

October 7, 2023.

383 days, 9,192 hours.

That’s how long it has been since Duquesne men’s soccer lost a game on home turf at Rooney Field.

In their first action since becoming nationally ranked, the No. 23 Dukes picked up their 10th and 11th straight wins at Rooney to match and then establish a new program record for consecutive wins at home, after downing Atlantic 10 Conference rival Davidson on Saturday and Northern Kentucky on Tuesday.

“You love your home,” said Duquesne Head Coach Chase Brooks. “It’s just a fun place to play.”

Part of what Brooks loves about Rooney Field are the quirks it possesses that are difficult for away teams to deal with.

“We’re out here every day,” Brooks said, “[but] opposing teams come in and they see a football field that’s offset, fans right on top of [them].”

Senior goalkeeper Zoltan Nagy offered a similar sentiment, but doesn’t let Rooney Field’s charm distract him on the field.

“For other teams, it’s just so hard to play here,” Nagy said. But we just work with what we have. We know what we have, and we play well on [Rooney Field].”

Despite the major accomplishment, the Dukes are not letting it cloud their view of their ultimate goal, an Atlantic 10 Championship, which would be their first.

“It’s just a tick on the list,” said forward Maxi Hopfer. “Our goal is still the same, win the A-10, get the ring for the first time.”

Brooks delivered a similar message.

“Every day you step on the field is an opportunity to get better,” Brooks said. “Tonight’s no different, you have to take it one game at a time, and you can’t take your foot off the gas.”

The Dukes wasted little time versus Davidson, as 11 minutes into the match, Grant McIntosh fired a 30-yard lining pass into the box to teammate Blaize Hardy, who rose up and headed the ball past Davidson keeper Lucas Beltran and into the top right of the net for the game’s lone score.

For Hardy, it was his first score of the season and first in a Duquesne uniform, two milestones that he was happy to finally achieve.

“To be honest, I didn’t even know how I was gonna celebrate. I was just happy to get my first one for the team,” Hardy said.

Davidson was able to take control of the ball for most of the game afterward, but the Dukes’ defense was up to the task and eliminated any real Davidson pressure.

“There were so many blocked shots out there tonight,” Brooks said. “That’s a credit to our guys and our group, and they understand the defensive effort that it takes.”

Nagy continued his strong season, as he registered four saves in the contest, with Hardy also contributing a team save.

“[Nagy’s] shot-stopping ability is pretty darn awesome,” Brooks said. “It’s just nice to have somebody with the size and presence behind you that you can trust.”

Nagy’s final save came with 7 minutes left in the match, as he erased a point-blank shot by Vincent Bennage as the Dukes held on to win 1-0.

In their last non-conference game of the season on Tuesday, the Dukes picked up another 1-0 win, this time against Northern Kentucky.

Once again, the match’s lone goal came early, as 16 minutes into the match, an Ashwin Menon throw-in was headed by Jesper Moksnes toward Hopfer, who snuck the ball past Romeo Paparesta and into the top right corner.

After the goal, the entire Duquesne squad went to the sideline to celebrate together, including Nagy, who ran the entire length of the field to join the party.

“I love it,” Nagy said, “Every time I see that ball go into the net on the other side, I’m so happy.”

For Hopfer, it marked his seventh goal of the season and his fifth game-winner.

“It never gets old,” Hopfer said. “It’s lights out, it’s celebrating.”

It was another strong defensive game for the Dukes, largely rooted on the chemistry the unit possesses, something echoed by Brooks.

“Everyone’s willing to sacrifice,” Brooks said. “[The defense] have each other’s back and you can’t ask much more from a group than that.”

Nagy made four saves in the match, bringing his season total to 54, as he registered his second shutout in four days and his sixth on the year.

He credited his performance to his confidence as a keeper, as well as his confidence in his teammates.

“Those guys in front of me,” Nagy said, “they give me so much confidence that it makes my job easier.”

The Dukes had opportunities to add to their lead throughout the game, matching NKU with 13 shots, and had five on goal to NKU’s four, but were plagued by several near misses and four saves by Paparesta.

The Dukes, now 11-2-1 and hunting for a regular-season title, are on the road on Saturday versus UMass in the penultimate game of the regular season, before returning home on Nov. 2 for Senior Day versus Fordham.