Though they entered the meet as underdogs, the Blue Devils walked away from Columbus, Ohio with several notable triumphs.
No. 13 Duke started its 2024 season off with a bang this past weekend, sweeping its first five races of the season.
With spring fast approaching, Duke is poised to enter the 2024 rowing season as a powerhouse. The Blue Devils will look to continue boosting the program’s reputation under head coach Megan Cooke Carcagno after finishing third in the ACC Championships last year.
No. 14 Duke rowing competed in the ACC Championships on home soil Friday and Saturday as it faced off against the conference’s finest on Lake Wheeler in Raleigh.
Duke ended with 88 points, followed by the Orange with 86 and the Quakers with 82.
With rowing season on the horizon, The Chronicle previews this year's team and its postseason outlook.
“Every exit is an entry somewhere else.” While the Blue Devils wer certainly not on Tom Stoppard’s mind at the time, the sentiment was loud and clear Sunday at the Rivanna Romp in Charlottesville, Va.
The Blue Devils earned the bronze medal at the ACC Championship hosted by Clemson on Lake Hartwell. This is the 10th time that Duke has accomplished this, and the impressive performance was capped off with an outright victory in the Second Varsity Four event.
The Blue Devils did not try anything too fancy at this regatta and their emphasis on solid, fundamental rowing won the day.
“We've done a good job, everything that we're doing is good,” head coach Megan Cooke Carcagno said. “I just think the next few months are critical for achieving that mission.”
In a sport full of change, experience does not necessarily equal speed, and the young Blue Devils have made their presence known.
With their legs on fire, their lungs desperate for air and 500 meters left in the race, the victorious crews are those with rowers willing to dig the deepest.
In such a detail-oriented sport, every little thing counts.
Duke’s Varsity Eight powered the way, complemented extremely well by its lower boats, for a solid performance on Ohio State’s home waters at the Griggs Reservoir.
What’s better than having one crew post competitive times in Varsity Eight races? Having two.
Duke won all six events Saturday, earning 90 points and comfortably rowing away with the victory.
Although they’ll have to go through perennial powerhouse Virginia, the Blue Devils appear to have a mix of experience and newcomers that’ll make them contenders to finally take home the conference crown.
Amidst the many contributors to Duke’s lively and innovative campus are some of its hardest workers: the Duke women’s rowing team.
The Blue Devils may have potentially been able to seal a first place win in the conference as well as a top-10 finish in the NCAA championships.
The Varsity Four boat earned gold at the ACC championship, making Duke history in the process.
