No. 6 Duke is headed to Newton, Massachusetts, for a heavyweight weekend at the ACC/B1G Challenge, and the Blue Devils will see their first ranked competition of the season right away.
Duke opens against No. 1 Northwestern on Sept. 4 before turning around to face No.
13 Maryland on Sept. 6.
The Blue Devils arrive at 2-0 after a sharp start against William & Mary and Richmond. Duke rolled past the Tribe 7-0 and then edged Richmond 1-0, with five different players finding the net over the opening weekend. Juliette Schulten and Ashley Stockdale each delivered career-high two-goal performances against William & Mary, while Stockdale added the lone goal at Richmond to finish the weekend with three.
This is the 11th year of the interconference event, which once again brings together Boston College, Duke, Maryland and Northwestern. Hosted this year by Boston College, the challenge will be played at the Field Hockey Complex in Newton.
Duke has gone 12-8 all-time in the event, including wins over Maryland in each of the last three meetings. Northwestern has been the hotter team lately, winning eight straight in the challenge from 2022-25.
The Blue Devils’ recent track record against their two opponents adds some bite to the trip. Friday’s matchup with Northwestern will be the 18th all-time meeting, with the Wildcats holding a 9-8 edge and riding a six-game winning streak.
Duke had won six straight before Northwestern flipped the series in 2021. Sunday brings the 57th meeting with Maryland, and the Terrapins still lead the series 36-17-3 dating to 1985.
But Duke has taken the last four, including the 2024 NCAA First Round game and last season’s ACC/B1G Challenge.
Duke’s opening weekend showed off more than just a few hot sticks. The Blue Devils got goals from five different players, and the assists were spread around too.
McVeigh had two assists, while Sofia Fidalgo Schioppa, Lily Soldan and transfer Callie Rogers each picked up their first career helpers. Senior Madison Beach also added an assist.
The defensive start has been just as crisp. Duke allowed only two second-half shots across the two wins and held opponents scoreless for 120 minutes.
Alaina McVeigh remains the centerpiece of it all. The graduate student is in her final season after missing her freshman year with an injury, then breaking out in 2023 with ACC Co-Offensive Player of the Year honors and a spot on the NFHCA All-America First Team. She enters 2026 as a three-time NFHCA All-American and All-ACC First Team selection, and she has scored in 35 of 64 career games with 11 multi-goal outings.
McVeigh’s numbers already place her among the program’s best. She has 46 career goals, which ranks ninth in Duke history, and 108 career points, good for 10th on the school list.
She has produced at least 20 points in each of the past three seasons, scored double-digit goals in each of her first three years at Duke, and is one of only six players in program history to post at least 20 points in each of her first three seasons. She is also one of 13 Blue Devils to reach the century mark in career points.
She was named to the 2026 USA Field Hockey Women’s National Team in May, joining former Blue Devils and USAFH veterans Leah Crouse and Jillian Wolgemuth.
The weekend also comes with a deeper look at Duke’s roster makeup. The Blue Devils have 17 letterwinners back from last season’s team, along with eight newcomers - five freshmen and three transfers.
Three players from North Carolina are on the roster: Alessia Cicuto, Adriana Ensani and Callie McCarron. Five Blue Devils - Madison Beach, Julia Boehringer, Alaina McVeigh Ashley Stockdale and Shae Wozniak - were named to the 2026 NFHCA Division I Watchlist.
Duke will return home after the trip for games against James Madison and VCU on Sept. 11 and 13. The Blue Devils face James Madison on Friday at 5 p.m. before meeting VCU at 1 p.m. on Sept. 13.
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