Latest news with #BlueDevils
Chicago Tribune
13 hours ago
- Sport
- Chicago Tribune
‘A real challenge' to defend, Warren's Addison Stanciak is the 2025 News-Sun Girls Soccer Player of the Year
A prolific scorer, forward Addison Stanciak is always looking to deliver a finishing touch on the field. Stanciak, who recently graduated from Warren, takes the same approach in her development as a player. Trying to become more well-rounded and less predictable, the Saint Louis recruit didn't want to depend on her right foot so much. 'I consistently tried to use my left foot,' Stanciak said. 'I used to pass a lot with it, but when I was shooting with it, I was a lot more hesitant and would switch to my right foot if possible.' The extra touches in her game paid dividends. Stanciak, the 2025 News-Sun Girls Soccer Player of the Year, scored 28 goals and added six assists to lead the Blue Devils (12-5-2, 5-1-1) to second place in the North Suburban Conference during her senior season. 'The most challenging forwards to face are the most unpredictable ones, and Addison is extremely difficult to read, which makes marking her a real challenge,' Stevenson junior defender Annie Egeland said. 'She can shoot with both feet and is just as effective at creating chances as she is at finishing them. Her ability to adapt, make quick decisions and consistently impact the game makes her a constant threat and a major asset to any team.' Stanciak, who was named the conference player of the year and was selected to the Illinois Soccer Coaches Association's all-state team, finished her Warren career with 78 goals and 182 points, both program records. Twenty-one of her goals were game-winners. 'The records were something important to me,' Stanciak said. 'It's a huge accomplishment and showed my progress over all four years.' Warren coach Ryan McCabe wasn't surprised to see those records fall. He predicted greatness back in Stanciak's sophomore season. 'I gave her the kiss of death, and we joke about it,' McCabe said. 'I said she has the potential to be the greatest scorer in school history. Why did I put that pressure on a sophomore? She handled everything well.' McCabe said Stanciak has a rare combination of speed, size and strength but also showed perseverance. 'It's tough because she always gets the best defender on her,' McCabe said. 'They game-plan around her. She knows every game coming in that she has to do well and perform. That's a very heavy burden to carry.' Warren junior midfielder Kate Mondejar said she has been playing with Stanciak for nearly eight years and has learned she makes her teammates better. 'Addison's competitiveness is unlike anyone else's, so much so that the high standard she holds herself up to radiates throughout the team and brings those around her up with her,' Mondejar said. Stanciak, whose father, Ron, played soccer at Marist and has been a coach for the past 15 seasons, said she's proud of her high school career. 'Looking back, I was terrified my freshman year being on a team with so many seniors,' Stanciak said. 'If I could see myself as a senior while being a freshman, I would be just shocked. … It's been completely amazing to me how my career went.'
USA Today
a day ago
- Sport
- USA Today
Duke quarterback commit explains why he picked the Blue Devils
Duke quarterback commit explains why he picked the Blue Devils Terry Walker III has been committed to the Duke Blue Devils since April and he is currently representing them at the Elite 11 Finals in Los Angeles. The three-star quarterback is competing to be crowned the MVP of the prestigious quarterback competition. Tom Loy of 247Sports asked about why he committed to Duke, and he quickly pointed out the culture and success quarterbacks have had under offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach Jonathan Brewer. "It's a great culture," he explained. "When you go there, it just feels like home. I mean, talking with other guys that have been on the officials already, everybody's enjoyed their official. It just feels like home to everybody. And then Coach Brewer's done a great job with quarterbacks in the past. He had Kevin Jennings at SMU, who turned out to be great. When he pulls up that PowerPoint and shows you the guys that (he's coached), and tells you that you're going to be on that PowerPoint one day, like you're going to be their next guy. It's hard to pass up, they throw the ball downfield a lot. You know, Maalik Murphy had a great year with them, record-breaking year. Off the field stuff, just being at a prestigious school like Duke where academic-wise, it's probably one of the – if not the best non-Ivy League in the country, then one of the top three at least. So it's just a great school to be at and great people. It's just – it's a hard opportunity to pass up." Walker is coming off his first season as the full-time starter at Lawrence Central High School. In 10 games, he completed 46.3% (95-205) of his passes for 1,467 yards and 17 touchdowns against three interceptions. He also rushed the ball 48 times for 377 yards and four more touchdowns, averaging 7.9 yards per carry. With limited reps, and a 46.7% career completion percentage, Walker was a bit of an unknown at the event, but he impressed Andrew Ivins, 247Sports Director of Scouting. "We weren't sure what to expect from Walker as he's less than a 50 percent career passer, but he ended up being arguably the biggest surprise of the night. Walker showcased the ability to make advanced throws and tied Henderson with the best spin rate on the balls that were tracked. He might be a longer burn, but something is there." Walker is ranked as the No. 788 overall player and No. 45 quarterback in the 247Sports composite ranking. He is the No. 9 player from Indiana. Follow us @DukeWire on X and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Duke news, notes, and opinions.
USA Today
6 days ago
- Sport
- USA Today
Chris Pollard takes two key Duke players with him to Virginia
Chris Pollard takes two key Duke players with him to Virginia Not a great start to the post-Chris Pollard era of Duke Blue Devils baseball. Star player AJ Gracia and Kyle Johnson are both heading to Virginia to join Pollard with the Cavaliers. It stings when you lose any player to the transfer portal, but it feels like a double dose when they go to a fellow ACC rival. Gracia hit 15 home runs this past season and drove in 54 runs while batting .293 and drew 57 walks. Last season, he ended the year with 14 home runs and 58 RBIs. He was a career .299 batter for the Blue Devils, and now he takes his talents to Charlottesville. Johnson is a Virginia native and will return to his home state with the Cavaliers. The two-way player finished the year 4-4 with 43 strikeouts to 26 walks. His ERA was a bit high at 7.19. He added four home runs and 19 RBIs as a hitter for Duke this past season. Kendall Rogers of D1 Baseball reported the news of Gracia and Johnson following Pollard. The Blue Devils have yet to name a replacement for Pollard as the new head coach of Duke baseball, but many believe it will be Josh Jordan, who is currently the assistant coach at LSU. He was a long-time assistant under Pollard with the Blue Devils from 2012 to 2022. He helped LSU win a national championship, and many hope he will bring that level of aspiration to Durham.
Yahoo
12-06-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
2026 high-three-star Pittsburgh LB Colsen Gatten commits to Duke
Duke is making its presence felt in Pittsburgh once again, as the Blue Devils received a verbal commitment from 2026 high-three-star Central Catholic High School linebacker Colsen Gatten on Wednesday. Gatten intends to play his college football under head coach Manny Diaz, defensive coordinator/linebackers coach Jonathan Patke and the rest of the staff at Duke. Advertisement Diaz began building a relationship with Gatten when he was still the defensive coordinator at Penn State, and the Nittany Lions offered the linebacker back in June of 2023. Diaz was hired by Duke in December of 2023, and he offered Gatten a scholarship from the Blue Devils shortly after that in January of 2024. This is the second consecutive cycle in which the Blue Devils have landed a pledge from a Pittsburgh Central Catholic linebacker, as Duke signed four-star prospect Bradley Gompers in the 2025 class. The Blue Devils signed four total prospects out of Pennsylvania in the 2025 cycle. Gatten has visited Durham to check out Duke's campus on multiple occasions, including in late January. Advertisement He ranks as the No. 18 prospect in the state of Pennsylvania and the No. 50 linebacker in the 2026 cycle. As a junior in 2024, the 6-foot-1, 205-pound Gatten helped lead the Vikings to a 12-3 overall record. Central Catholic earned a Western Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic League (WPIAL) 6A championship and a runner-up finish in the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association (PIAA) 6A state championship game. In addition to Duke and Penn State, Colsen Gatten has received scholarship offers from Boston College, California, Cincinnati, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisville, Maryland, Michigan, Michigan State, Nebraska, Notre Dame, Oklahoma, Pittsburgh, SMU, Syracuse, Tennessee, Texas A&M, Virginia Tech, Wake Forest, West Virginia, Wisconsin and others. Advertisement He took an official visit to Pitt during the weekend of June 6 through June 8, and previously had an official visit planned to Indiana. His official visit date to Duke is not yet known. Gatten is a Penn State legacy recruit, as his father, Aaron Gatten, played for the Nittany Lions in the late 1990s and early 2000s. However, Colsen will look to blaze his own trail at Duke. With Colsen Gatten now in the fold, Duke's 2026 class grows to seven total commitments. SHARE YOUR THOUGHTS WITH DUKE FANS AT
NBC Sports
11-06-2025
- Sport
- NBC Sports
Chris Pollard hired as Virginia's baseball coach after 13 seasons at Duke
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. — Chris Pollard has been hired as Virginia's baseball coach after spending the past 13 seasons at Atlantic Coast Conference rival Duke. Virginia athletic director Carla Williams on Tuesday announced the successor to Brian O'Connor, who left June 1 to take the job at Mississippi State. Pollard was 420-296 and led the Blue Devils to seven NCAA regionals, four super regionals and two ACC Tournament championships. Duke hosted a super regional this season, losing in three games to Murray State. Pollard is 806-614-3 in 26 seasons as a head coach. He also has coached at Pfeiffer (2000-04), Appalachian State (2005-12) and Duke (2013-25). As he did at Duke in 2025, Pollard led Appalachian State to the NCAA Tournament during his final season with the Mountaineers in 2012. The Blue Devils are coming off back-to-back 40-win seasons for the first time in program history. Pollard takes over a Virginia program that went to 18 NCAA regionals, nine super regionals and seven College World Series in 22 seasons under O'Connor. The 2015 team won the national championship. Virginia went 32-18 this season and missed the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2019.
