No. 4 Duke men's lacrosse takes down No. 1 Virginia, 16-14
The Duke Blue Devils took down the top-ranked Virginia Cavaliers in an early ACC men's lacrosse showdown. Here's how it happened ➡️
www.ncaa.comHere’s the latest I can confirm about the Duke Blue Devils men’s lacrosse program from recent publicly available updates:
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Duke knocked off a top-5 opponent on April 24-25, 2026, defeating No. 3 North Carolina at Dorrance Field 16-12, with Buck Cunningham 12 saves and three Duke players posting hat tricks. This result marked Duke’s first win over a top-five foe while the Blue Devils were not ranked in the top 10 since 2016, and it propelled them into strong consideration for NCAA postseason seeding.[2]
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In the 2025 season, Duke opened with a dominant 26-7 win over Bellarmine, featuring 17 players scoring and multiple players posting two or more points in their season debut, highlighting Duke’s offensive depth under head coach John Danowski. The game was part of Duke’s early strong showing that year.[3]
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Duke also had notable ACC action in 2025, including a 8-7 victory for in-state rivalries; however, a subsequent late-season result in 2025 saw Duke fall to Virginia 14-10 in early April, indicating a competitive ACC slate with both high-scoring games and tougher losses within the conference.[5][8]
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For broader context, Duke’s lacrosse program has a history of ACC play and NCAA postseason appearances under Danowski, including competitive performances against traditional powers like Virginia and North Carolina, and continued participation in national conversations about seeding and postseason qualification.[9][2]
If you’d like, I can pull the latest, month-by-month headlines from 2026 and assemble a concise timeline with scores, key players, and postseason implications. I can also create a quick chart (e.g., win-loss trajectory over the 2025-2026 seasons) if you want a visual.