The Chronicle’s website includes daily coverage of Duke Athletics dating back all the way to 2001. Let’s take a look through the archives to find interesting events and articles that premiered during this week over the last two decades.
2014: Freshman running back Shaun Wilson sets school rushing yards record…barely
The scoreboard indicating a 41-3 Duke win against Kansas only showed part of the picture—true freshman running back Shaun Wilson had just secured the school’s still-standing single-game rushing yards record after racking up 245 yards. Thanks to his big-play abilities, Wilson only needed 12 carries to surpass Robert Baldwin’s 20-year-old record of 238. Wilson found the end zone three times from 69, 68 and 45 yards out, with the two longer touchdowns making him the first Blue Devil in more than 70 years with two runs of that distance in the same game. The yards record had almost been left standing, however, with Wilson stuck at 237 until the Jayhawks turned the ball over on downs with five seconds left and Duke quarterback Anthony Boone handed off to Wilson for an eight-yard gain just before time expired.
2016: NCAA moves championship events out of North Carolina due to bathroom law
Although the ACC’s men’s basketball tournament was already scheduled to be played in Brooklyn, N.Y., at the time of the Sept. 12 announcement, the NCAA made the decision to move all championship events out of North Carolina due to the Public Facilities Privacy and Security Act (known as HB2) signed into law six months prior. The bill, which has since been partially repealed, allowed bathroom use only according to the sex listed on one’s birth certificate, spurring widespread criticism and protests. Duke Athletic Director Kevin White had said the bill was “discriminatory, troubling and embarrassing” and agreed with the NCAA’s decision to move events out of Greensboro and Cary. It took until October for new sites to be announced, and the ACC and NCAA continued to lead the charge against HB2 until the repeal of the bathroom provision in March 2017.
2004: Men’s soccer records 7th straight shutout in win against Clemson
Anchored by their stingy defense, the Blue Devils began the 2004 season 7-0 all without surrendering a single goal. The incredible start began with a 10-0 throttling of Division III school Emory & Henry, with Duke’s youthful squad going on to amass 25 unanswered goals during the streak to the delight of the Koskinen Stadium crowds. In the team’s first conference match Sep. 18 against Clemson, freshman Spencer Wadsworth scored less than six minutes after the opening whistle to hand the Blue Devils a 1-0 lead they would not relinquish. The MVP trophy of the hot streak would easily belong to senior captain and goalkeeper Justin Trowbridge, who posted five shutouts in as many starts. The unmatched first several weeks for the 2004 team would propel the Blue Devils to 18 wins en route to their fifth and most recent College Cup semifinal appearance.
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Micah Hurewitz is a Trinity senior and was previously a sports managing editor of The Chronicle's 118th volume.