Life At Duke: Athletics: Varsity Sports

If you think you've got what it takes to be a part of one of Duke's varsity teams—13 women's sports and 13 men's sports—and you would like more information about our sports programs, we encourage you to learn more about Duke Athletics. There you will find detailed information on our coaches and programs, as well as information on our athletic scholarships and recruiting programs.

Women's Basketball

Consistently a top contender among the nation's basketball powers, the women Blue Devils have been led for the past 13 years by Coach Gail Goestenkors. Coach G, as she is known, has claimed ACC and National Coach of the Year honors and has coached some of the country's top players, including Alana Beard ‘04, the first women's basketball player in Duke's history to have her jersey retired.

Men's Basketball

Men's basketball is perhaps Duke's best-known team. Their accomplishments are impressive: 30 NCAA appearances, including 14 Final Four berths—10 of which have been under the leadership of Mike Krzyzewski, known universally as Coach K. Under Coach K, the team has brought home three national championships. Coach K has been named Coach of the Year 12 times and has had eight national players of the year.

Women's Tennis

Coach Jamie Ashworth, who has completed a decade at Duke, is considered one of the most successful women’s tennis coaches in the nation. He has led the Blue Devils to their 16th consecutive ACC tournament title and six appearances in the NCAA Final Four.

Men's Tennis

Under Coach Jay Lapidus, now in his 15th year at Duke, the Blue Devils have claimed the ACC title 10 times and have been to the NCAA 14 times. Coach Lapidus has been named ACC Coach of the Year six times and ITA Region Coach of the Year four times.

Men's Lacrosse

Lacrosse is the oldest sport in North America. A game of the Iroquois confederacy, it is rooted in religious belief and was often played to resolve conflicts, heal the sick and develop strength. Now under the leadership of Coach John Danowski, the men’s lacrosse team has had 10 NCAA tournament berths and three ACC championships within the past 15 years.

Women's Lacrosse

Another powerhouse team, the Blue Devils have reached the NCAA tournament every year since 1998, advancing to the Elite Eight four times. Head Coach Kerstin Kimel, twice named ACC Coach of the Year, has led the highly ranked lacrosse team since the program began in 1996.

Baseball

The Blue Devils, now coached by alumnus Sean McNally ’94, have an impressive—and historic—major league draft record. Crash Davis '42, featured in the movie Bull Durham, left Duke to play in the majors in Philadelphia before he came back to Durham and was signed by the Durham Bulls. And in the past six seasons, 26 players have entered the major league.

Men's Wrestling

Coach Clar Anderson, an international competitor himself, took his team to Russia a few years ago to wrestle in Moscow, St. Petersburg, and Siberia. At the helm of Duke's wrestling program for the past nine years, Coach Anderson helped two wrestlers win national honors last year and recently was selected to lead a tour of NCAA All-America wrestlers on a 10-day tour of China.

Women's Rowing

Duke's newest varsity sport, women’s rowing has consistently turned in solid performances under Coach Robyn Horner. Since the program started in 1999, the team has grown from 16 to 60 members. Duke rowers have been invited to National Team tryouts and earned ACC honors and commendations, All-American honors, CRCA National Scholar-Athletes honors, and All-South Region honors.

Women's Soccer

Since coming to Duke in 1991, head Coach Robbie Church has led his team to an NCAA tournament bid twice. Duke’s players, who consistently receive academic and regional honors, also benefit from the leadership of Assistant Coach Carla Overbeck, who was captain of the gold medal 1996 U.S. Olympic Team and the silver medal 2000 team. The assistant coach was recently inducted into the National Soccer Hall of Fame.

Men's Soccer

With one of the best programs in the country, the Blue Devils have won the league title four times and made 14 trips to the NCAA. During summer 2006, Coach John Rennie led the team on a tour of Germany, where they played three professional teams and attended a World Cup match.

Field Hockey

Duke has consistently ranked in the top 20 nationally, and under the guidance of Coach Beth Bozman, the team earned back-to-back spots in the NCAA Final Four in 2003 and 2004. Since Coach Bozman arrived at Duke in 2003, the team has set school records for goals, assists, and points. This year’s team boasts four players who won All-America honors.

Women's Volleyball

The team, under the direction of Coach Jolene Nagel for seven years, has recorded 20-win seasons in four of the past five years and earned three NCAA tournament bids. Since coming to Duke, Coach Nagel has received ACC and East Region Coach of the Year honors.

Football

Eighty-five Blue Devils have gone on to play in the NFL since 1937. Even more impressively, the football program has graduated 95 percent of its scholarship players since 1988 and has led the nation a record 12 times in graduation percentage in the past 20 years. Coach Ted Roof revitalized the Blue Devils in 2003 and looks to continue to improve their record.

Track & Field and Cross-Country

The men's and women's track and field and cross-country teams are led by Coach Norm Ogilvie. Blue Devil strengths in track and field have traditionally been in men's and women's pole vault and in middle-distance events. Last year, the women's team captured Duke's first-ever Penn Relays championship, taking top honors in the distance medley relay.

Swimming and Diving

Water is 773 times denser and 55 times more viscous than air. A diver from the 10m platform hits the water at around 40 mph, but a freestyle swimmer puts out more than 1,000 watts of power to move at four miles per hour! Led by head Coach Dan Colella, who came to Duke in 2005, the Duke men’s team is gearing up for another successful season.

Fencing

Under the leadership of Coach Alex Beguinet for the past 21 years, the Blue Devil men have made it to the NCAA fencing championships for the past 10 years and the women, for the past five years. The highly regarded Coach Beguinet has turned out 10 All-Americans and one NCAA champion in his tenure at Duke.

Men's and Women's Golf

Men's Coach Rod Myers, one of the most respected names in golf, became a member of the Golf Coaches Association Hall of Fame in 1986. At Duke for the past 33 years, he regularly takes his team to post-season berths. Women's Coach Dan Brooks, an inductee into the National Golf Coaches Hall of Fame, has led the Blue Devils to 16 NCAA appearances in his 21 years at Duke—including three NCAA titles and three NCAA individual national championships, the most recent in 2005.