Mount St. Mary’s Men’s Soccer Falls 2-0 at Duquesne
Mount St. Mary’s men’s soccer suffered its first loss of the 2026 season Thursday, falling 2-0 to Duquesne at Arthur J. Rooney Field in Pittsburgh.
The Mountaineers held the Dukes scoreless through the opening 45 minutes, but Duquesne broke through twice in the second half to improve to 2-0-1. Mount St. Mary’s dropped to 0-1-1 after opening the season with a scoreless draw against Binghamton.
Duquesne controlled much of the possession and created considerably more opportunities. The Dukes finished with a 20-6 advantage in shots and put five attempts on goal, while Mount St. Mary’s managed one shot on target. Duquesne also held an 11-5 advantage in corner kicks.
Despite that pressure, Mount goalkeeper Ryan Collins and the Mountaineers’ back line kept the match scoreless through halftime.
Collins, who recorded a clean sheet with three saves in his collegiate debut against Binghamton, made three saves Thursday. The freshman has now started each of the Mountaineers’ first two matches.
Duquesne breaks through after halftime
The Mount remained within striking distance until the 59th minute.
Cody Da put Duquesne ahead at 58:05, scoring his first goal of the season to give the Dukes a 1-0 lead. The goal came after Mount St. Mary’s successfully navigated significant Duquesne pressure during the opening half.
Mount St. Mary’s tried to respond but had difficulty creating clear scoring opportunities against a Duquesne defense that has been outstanding early this season.
Felix Alschner recorded the Mountaineers’ only shot on goal. Daniel Morales Silva led Mount St. Mary’s with two shots, while Christian Kyriacou, Oliver Brown and Camden Marquette also registered attempts.
Duquesne goalkeeper Sam Coss needed only one save to record the shutout.
The Dukes eventually put the game away in the final minute. Jameson Michel scored at 89:38 off an assist from Jaxon Ervin, extending Duquesne’s advantage to 2-0 with only 22 seconds remaining. It was Michel’s second goal of the season.
The late goal capped another strong defensive performance for Duquesne. The Dukes opened the season with a scoreless draw against Lafayette before defeating Bowling Green 3-0 and Mount St. Mary’s 2-0. That gave Duquesne three consecutive clean sheets to begin the 2026 campaign.
Mount defense keeps team competitive
The final statistics show how much pressure the Mountaineers faced, but the game remained competitive for nearly the entire afternoon.
Duquesne attempted nine shots during the first half compared with two for Mount St. Mary’s. The Dukes added another 11 attempts after halftime while the Mount produced four.
Still, Collins and the defense prevented the game from getting away from them. The Mount surrendered only five shots on goal despite facing 20 total attempts.
That defensive foundation has been one of the early positives for a Mount St. Mary’s team featuring several newcomers.
Eight Mountaineers made their first Division I starts in the season-opening draw against Binghamton, including Collins, Noah Kaiser, Morales Silva, Jayson Salvador, Lage Ekra-Reistad, Thomas Dix, Alschner and Lincoln Bauer.
Mount St. Mary’s coach Brett Teach is therefore working with a group that is gaining significant Division I experience early in the season.
Offensive breakthrough still ahead
The next step is getting the offense going.
Mount St. Mary’s has not scored through its first 180 minutes of the season, but Morales Silva has been among its most active attacking players. He led the Mount with three shots against Binghamton before producing two more against Duquesne.
The Mountaineers showed flashes offensively Thursday, particularly when they earned consecutive corner kicks in the 15th and 16th minutes, but Duquesne consistently limited high-quality opportunities.
The Dukes entered the matchup in good form after beating Bowling Green 3-0. Duquesne scored all three goals in that match after the 75th minute, showing the same ability to turn a tight second half into a convincing result that it displayed against the Mount.
Mount returns home Monday
Mount St. Mary’s will not have to wait long for another opportunity.
The Mountaineers return to Waldron Family Stadium in Emmitsburg on Monday, Aug. 31, to face Saint Joseph’s. Kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m.
The matchup begins an important stretch for a young Mount team still establishing its identity before conference play.
MSB Take
The final score does not completely capture how long Mount St. Mary’s stayed in this game.
Duquesne clearly had the better attacking numbers, but the Mount went into halftime tied 0-0 and remained only one goal down until the final seconds. Against an undefeated Duquesne team that has yet to allow a goal this season, that is not a terrible performance for a Mount roster incorporating so many new Division I players.
The concern is the offense. Two games, no goals and only limited shots on target means the Mountaineers need to find more ways to get Morales Silva and the rest of their attackers into dangerous areas.
Defensively, however, there is something to build around. Collins has looked composed through his first two collegiate starts, and the Mount has allowed only two goals through 180 minutes despite facing significant pressure.
Monday’s home matchup against Saint Joseph’s gives the Mountaineers an immediate chance to turn solid defensive play into their first victory of the season.
