June 24, 2003

DURHAM, N.C. - The 2003 incoming recruiting class for the Duke women's soccer team has been tabbed the eighth-best in the nation by Soccerbuzz.com. It marks the second straight year head coach Robbie Church has brought in a top-10 recruiting class as the 2002 group was ranked seventh.

In the Soccerbuzz.com rankings, Santa Clara was ranked No. 1 followed by Texas, UCLA, Portland, Notre Dame, North Carolina, Florida State, Duke, Nebraska and Stanford.

The Blue Devils will welcome eight new freshmen to campus in August and will boast a roster of a total of 22 players with 16 either freshmen or sophomores.

Duke is coming off a 2002 season where the Blue Devils finished with a 9-9-2 record. The Blue Devils return nine starters and 12 letterwinners, including leading scorer junior Casey McCluskey and goalkeeper Thora Helgadottir. McCluskey collected 10 goals and a total of 22 points as she earned honorable mention Soccerbuzz.com All-America accolades, while Helgadottir earned first team All-ACC honors for the second consecutive year.

Freshmen will report on Aug. 12 and the Blue Devils will open the 2003 slate with an exhibition match at Old Dominion on Aug. 23 at 7:00 PM. The season opener will be at home on Aug. 29 against Campbell at 7:00 PM.

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