Round of 16 - Home game - Sunday Nov. 30th @ 4 pm - Duke

[zipsrule]

GOOOOAAAAALLLLL!

 

2-0

[TennZip]

phenomenal work by Jack Sullivan and Remi

 

[zipsrule]

Zips Win!!!!

 

On to the Elite Eight!

[roopride]

Nice win!,

[TennZip]

Every Zip coach and every Zip player should be very proud.

Phenomenal effort....especially with the injury of Stefan Dobrijevic ...early in the game

Thinking good thoughts for Stefan

 

Duke did not have a single shot on goal.    Zips were the much more skilled soccer team and the much classier, professional soccer team.

I don't slight any zip by mentioning names......as all of the starters were outstanding.....

and every single sub....starting with Ignacio Alem and Jack Sullivan....ending with Jamai Royer, Nathan Ferguson and Braxton Hayes.....played outstanding fundament soccer.

 

Thorough beat down of an ACC Powerhouse......

 

For the zips fans living far from Akron, I also want to compliment Chad Welker and womens asst soccer Josh Kay.   Josh and Chad were outstanding on commentary.   

[Reslife4Life]

1 hour ago, UAZipster0305 said:

All is quiet here. Everyone must be either at the game or watching on ESPN+.

 

In any case, it is great to be up 1-0 at home in poor weather against a southern team that is likely focused on getting and staying warm.

Yeah I wasnt planning on taking off my gloves for the whole match 😂

 what a game! On to the elite 8!

[Zips1991]

Great game and great defensive effort down the stretch to make sure Duke had no false hope!

 

Feels good to be back in the Elite 8. Let's hope for a Saint Louis win and a week of recuperation for Stefan and Remi!

[csims0917]

Beautiful day to be a zip. Cold weather just makes us stronger. Elite 8 here we come!!

[TennZip]

 

[TennZip]

 

[Reslife4Life]

GOAL SLU! 2-2

[MDZip]

Great crowd for a pretty cold night tonight. Late in the game a large plastic bag blew down the field and ended up in the Zips goal. We remarked it was the best shot on goal Duke had in the match. 

[TennZip]

credit to the 1,344 great fans.......that showed up in 30 degree weather...with 20 mph winds...

https://goduke.com/documents/2025/11/30/Duke_at_Akron_MSOC_Final_Game_Book.PDF

[Zips1991]

5 minutes ago, TennZip said:

credit to the 1,344 great fans.......that showed up in 30 degree weather...with 20 mph winds...

https://goduke.com/documents/2025/11/30/Duke_at_Akron_MSOC_Final_Game_Book.PDF

I'm still cold two hours later but it was worth it!

[TennZip]

Tremendous article from the Cleveland Plain Dealer (this is currently not a subscriber only article...hopefully, all can access?)

I have not yet seen the press conferences....but this has quotes from several zips players, Coach Embick and the Duke coach

 

https://www.cleveland.com/sports/college/2025/12/akron-zips-mens-soccer-gives-duke-the-cold-shoulder-moves-into-ncaa-elite-eight-with-2-0-victory.html

 

“The crowd drove us through that game,” Daragh Reilly said. “You could see in the last 10-15 minutes, we were getting tired. We were trying to push each other, but every time we got a play, we made a tackle, the momentum kept swinging back to us.

 

“Big shoutout to the fans tonight. I don’t think we could have been anywhere near without that tonight.”

 

“Awesome performance not only from our team, but from the fans and community that packed this place in this weather and were behind us the whole game,” Coach Embick said.

“We fed off that energy, and I think that really helped us through some moments where maybe we weren’t playing as well as we wanted.”

[TennZip]

The Duke coach was very complimentary of Akron soccer in the post game press conference.

 

[Let'sGoZips94]

27 minutes ago, TennZip said:

The Duke coach was very complimentary of Akron soccer in the post game press conference.

 

 

Nothing makes me happier than seeing a sad P4 coach after losing to a mid major, let alone Akron. 

[TennZip]

 

[TennZip]

Article from the Duke Student newspaper.... (I like the vivid description....of what the restless Akron fans were wearing 😁).....(ps...did anyone get a photo of Fknbuflobo in his pom-pom hat?   😁)

 

https://www.dukechronicle.com/article/duke-mens-soccer-ncaa-tournament-akron-zips-ncaa-quarterfinal-john-kerr-acc-mac-ulfur-bjornsson-championship-20251201

 

“They had a lot of great weapons,” Duke head coach John Kerr said. “They had determination. They were strong in the backfield and on our heels throughout the match.”

 

The restless Zips fans — bundled in puffy coats and pom-pom hats to fend off the below-freezing temperatures — leapt to their feet to celebrate the score. Thick snow gloves diluted their clapping, so they took to stomping on the metal bleachers to show support.

[Zip_ME87]

2 hours ago, TennZip said:

(ps...did anyone get a photo of Fknbuflobo in his pom-pom hat?   😁)

 

Too cold to remove gloves for photos. You wouldn't want to see it anyway. 🫣

[Zip_ME87]

Thanks @TennZip for posting the Duke student newspaper article. Refreshing to read observations about the conditions and crowd and not just AI-generated information about stats.

 

 

[TennZip]

Congratulations to Remi Agunbiade and Jack Roman for making the team of the week.

The leader,,,,,the Captain....Daragh ...was honorable mention.    (come on, top drawer soccer !!!....no shots on goal  !!!!.....the whole Akron back 4 defensemen need to be recognized)

 

https://www.topdrawersoccer.com/college-soccer-articles/mens-team-of-the-week:-dec-2_aid55426

 

F: Remi Agunbiade, Akron(m) - The Canadian sophomore saved the best performance of his career for when it mattered most, scoring both goals to defeat Duke and move on to the Elite Eight.

 

M: Jack Roman, Akron(m) - Roman was a headache for Duke as he assisted one and played all 90 minutes in the 2-0 victory.