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From Minneapolis to Maui, from College Park to Chapel Hill, from Philadelphia to Florida State, my journey as a member of The Chronicle sports staff--and this year, as sports editor--has been an experience I will never forget.
Slightly more than four years into his job, Duke Director of Athletics Joe Alleva remains upbeat about the status of Duke sports. Since he was hired by President Nan Keohane to replace longtime AD Tom Butters, many tangible improvements and successes have buoyed the department.
Although the football team had none of its members chosen at the NFL draft this past weekend at New York's Madison Square Garden, five former Blue Devils will still get the chance to test their skills at the next level.
Although its home crowds might be more friendly, the women's tennis team loves playing on the road, and Thursday was no exception.
Despite steamrolling through its ACC opponents during the regular season, the women's tennis team remains adamant that it will not take its competition lightly in this weekend's ACC Tournament at N.C. State. When his top-seeded Blue Devils take the court against the ninth-seeded Wolfpack today at 1 p.m., coach Jamie Ashworth recognizes that, although it is not as important as an NCAA championship, an ACC trophy remains a valuable commodity in the world of collegiate women's tennis. "It's what we have to prepare us for NCAA play and it's what, in the history of our program, our success has been founded on," Ashworth said of the ACC Tournament. "It helps in recruiting, especially this year, when you have three ACC teams in the top 10 in the country. It makes the conference better, but I think it helps our program a lot." Nevertheless, Hillary Adams, who teams with Kelly McCain at No. 1 doubles, said she believes that there is a possibility of slippage as the team realizes just how close the postseason is. "After the regular season, when we've beaten all of the ACC teams, I could see how we could take [the ACC Tournament] lightly," Adams said. "We've just got to keep our focus and keep the NCAAs on hold for a second." Ashworth and his players feel very good about the way the team has progressed throughout the season, especially in its recent victories over top-10 powers Wake Forest and North Carolina. He noted that Duke's doubles teams--which have combined to win 14 out of their last 15 doubles points--has provided momentum heading into the singles matches, producing a confident lineup of six players that can compete with anybody in the nation. This momentum has been a boon for the team's top seed, McCain, who Ashworth believes has finally put together solid play in both doubles and singles. 'She's been playing well all year, but I think the biggest thing with her is actually her doubles play,' said Ashworth of the ACC player of the week. 'I think them getting wins in doubles is helping her singles confidence, because she doesn't go into her match worrying about doubles. She knows that she and Hillary can play with anybody in the country.' While the Blue Devil doubles teams continue to roll, Ashworth said he would like to see improved consistency from the middle of his lineup. Even in Duke's resounding victories, some of the team's singles players have been prone to bad days on the court. While their teammates have dominated, players like third-seed Julie DeRoo, fourth-seed Ioana Plesu and fifth-seed Saras Arasu have either had more trouble or have occasionally lost to their opponents when conventional wisdom would point otherwise. Despite these periodic deviations, however, Ashworth contends that every player on his team has improved throughout the season. 'Out of the seven years I've been here, this team has improved during the year more than any team we've had,' Ashworth said. 'I think we're playing better now than we were two weeks ago and that was better than a month ago, and that's good to see. A lot of times, teams get tired around this time of year, but I don't think we're tired--we're still getting better.' And with the team not feeling the effects of fatigue, it seems that the biggest impediment for Duke in winning another ACC title will be the sweltering heat. 'It's tough to go three matches in three days, but we've been going three matches in four days a few times in our season already, so we're used to that,' sixth-seed Katie Granson said. 'But we haven't gone three days straight accept for in Madison, [Wisc.], where we didn't have this kind of heat.'
When Duke football fans enter Wallace Wade Stadium for Saturday's 1:30 p.m. spring scrimmage, they will witness a very different Blue Devil team than the squad they last saw back in November.
Although the women's tennis team has hit few bumps along the road in a season in which it has dominated nearly all of its opponents, coach Jamie Ashworth had been looking for more from his players. The six-year veteran said he believed the Blue Devils had been winning their matches simply because of superior talent.
Facing its most important week of the season, with matches against third-ranked Wake Forest and eighth-ranked North Carolina, the women's tennis team knows that it will need to play its collective best in order to come away successful.
Another tournament, another victory.
Inclement weather might have put a damper on the women's tennis team's trip to Florida State, but it only delayed the inevitable.
Although the 2001-2002 men's basketball season just ended, preparations for the 2002-2003 are already underway.
After nearly a week of speculation, former Duke associate head coach and current Missouri head coach Quin Snyder has decided that he will not leave Columbia for his home state.
As the women's basketball team prepares for its journey to San Antonio amidst excitement and optimism, the oft-celebrated men's basketball team must sit at home and think about the disappointing end to its season.
If Sunday was St. Patrick's Day, then Wednesday was Brian Patrick's day.
If there's one word to describe tonight's first Sweet 16 matchup in Lexington, Ky., it's tradition.
For the second straight year and the sixth time in school history, a Duke player has been awarded one of college basketball's most prestigious individual honors.
GREENVILLE, S.C. -- While the Duke basketball team battled Winthrop and Notre Dame inside Greenville's Bi-Lo Center this weekend, a different battle raged outside the arena.
GREENVILLE, S.C. -- On the eve of his team's all-important matchup against top-seeded Duke in the NCAA Tournament's second round, Notre Dame coach Mike Brey admitted that he subscribed to the age-old notion of the luck of the Irish.
Duke Outlasts Wake Forest in ACC Semifinals
March 11, 2002
