The Duke men’s and women’s swimming and diving teams both came out of the weekend with marquee victories against two of last year’s top 25 squads at Taishoff Aquatic Pavilion on campus. Facing Georgia Tech, a team that finished last season ranked 19th in the country, the Blue Devil men recorded a 171.5-128.5 victory Friday. Duke was inspired by junior Spencer Booth, who won the 200-meter backstroke and the 100-meter fly race. And in the longer-distance relays, the Blue Devils came off the blocks quickly as well, placing teams in both the first and second positions. The women’s team did just as well to defeat Houston, last year’s 17th-ranked squad, by a large margin. The meet’s final score Friday was 188-110. Ashley Twitchell led the way for Duke by winning the 1000-meter freestyle race. Just 10 minutes later, Twitchell scored more points for the Blue Devils with a second-place finish in the 200 free contest. But it was in the butterfly races that Duke earned itself a big win against the Cougars. Shannon Beall and Elizabeth Bellew finished one-two in the 200-meter race, and Beall won the 100-meter fly as well.
Blue Devils get votes in coaches’ poll Duke Football’s recent upswing was recognized this week by three coaches across the country as the Blue Devils received three votes in the ESPN/USA Today coaches’ poll. Former Duke head coach Steve Spurrier used to vote for his old team in each season’s inaugural poll, but this is the first time the Blue Devils have received real votes since Spurrier ended that practice two years ago. Just three ACC teams appeared in this week’s poll: No. 11 Georgia Tech, No. 17 Miami and No. 24 Virginia Tech. The Hokies dropped from 13th to 24th after their Thursday night loss to unranked North Carolina in Chapel Hill.