Overview
Would you rather be a big fish in a small pond, or a small fish in a big pond?
It’s a question often asked as a thought experiment — asking if it is better to have unmatched talent compared to rivals, or to be challenged to improve by more formidable competitors. This season, Duke found itself in quite a big pond, surrounded by some very big fish. In The Chronicle’s season preview, we commented on the strength of the Blue Devils’ nonconference schedule as well as the highly talented teams added to the ACC after conference realignment.
In head coach Jolene Nagel’s 26th year, talent was anything but rare. Defensive stars Mailinh Godschall, Nikki Underwood and Grace Penn, and offensive stars Kerry Keefe, Rachel Richardson, Rylie Kadel, Ngozi Iloh, Breonna Goss and Taylor Williams dazzled on the court throughout the season. Still, despite optimism, the Blue Devils soon learned what it means to swim in the ACC.
The challenging schedule was reflected in Duke’s 4-7 nonconference record to open the season. The trials only continued, with the Blue Devils defeating their first two ACC opponents before eventually winding up with a 6-14 conference record to close the season with a 13th-place finish in the ACC — a fall from their sixth-place rank last season.
It was a developing team, with seven newcomers on a team of 18 players. The 2024 campaign saw big wins and disappointing losses, but a few standout moments made the season one to remember. In a big pond, opportunities for nutrition abound, and Duke was made better from its competition and will grow for seasons to come. -Alex Sizemore
Results relative to expectations
Simply put, underwhelming. Both Alex and I predicted the inverse of the Blue Devils’ final record, as head coach Jolene Nagel’s squad finished with a 10-21 overall record along with a meager 6-14 mark in conference play. The team had all of the requisite talent to notch at least a .500 record overall, but couldn’t put away a number of weaker opponents. Dropping a game to conference bottom-feeder Notre Dame was discouraging for Duke, along with early-season losses against less talented teams in other conferences, including Michigan State, South Carolina and LSU. Each of those three squads finished under .500 in their respective conferences.
However, there is still something to be said for the quality of Duke’s opponents. It faced off against the eventual national champions in Penn State and the NCAA Tournament’s No. 1 overall seed, Pittsburgh. Throughout conference play, the Blue Devils competed against some of the best teams the country had to offer and victories in many conference matchups would have been a lot to ask from a relatively inexperienced squad. -Myles Powicki
Best win: Sept. 13 vs. Princeton
It was early in the nascent season for the young Duke team. The Blue Devils’ had much to prove as they went into the nonconference Penn State Invitational. The first team on the weekend slate was the Princeton Tigers. At the time, both teams were barely on the upside of a .500 record, with Duke at 4-3 and Princeton at 2-1. The season prior, the Tigers had a successful campaign, finishing with a record of 14-9 and 11-3 in the Ivy League, second in the conference behind Yale.
“Our preseason has turned out to be very, very, very competitive,” head coach Jolene Nagel said in anticipation of the early nonconference matchup. “Princeton always does very well in the Ivy League.”
The match began with Princeton taking both of the first two sets. However, an early third-set offensive play gave Duke the momentum to maintain a lead and win the third set with a comfortable 8-point margin; the fourth set followed with the same scoreline. The abbreviated fifth set — awarded to the first team to 15 points — was anything but comfortable. The two teams went to 5-5, then 6-6, 7-7, 8-8 and finally 9-9 before the Blue Devils clinched the match with a 6-3 scoring run.
The victory would become Duke’s only comeback of the season after losing the first two sets. The Blue Devils tallied a season-high 12 service aces in the match and logged their fourth-most kills of the season with 65. Senior outside hitter Rachel Richardson was the star of the match, putting up four season-high stats with 44 attempts, 17 kills, 13 digs and three service aces. Overall, the five-set epic showcased some of the Blue Devils’ best offensive volleyball of the season.
Princeton went on to have a good 2024 season, finishing with a record of 16-11 and 12-2 in the Ivy League for second place again behind Yale, demonstrating the strength of the squad that Duke overcame. It was one of three victories — the others being Colgate and Davidson — in which the Blue Devils defeated a team with a winning record this season. -Sizemore
MVP: Kerry Keefe
Duke’s most valuable player was undoubtedly junior outside hitter Kerry Keefe, as the Pacific Palisades, Calif., native notched a career season. Keefe played every one of the team’s 115 sets and tallied a whopping 411 kills on a .226 hitting percentage, an efficient mark for a hitter with her volume.
And her volume was impressive, too. She took 1188 attempts, almost 500 more than freshman Taylor Williams’ 690, who was second on the team. Keefe spent much of her season working opposite Williams and helping her adjust to the collegiate game, and the pair should be returning at an even higher level for the Blue Devils next season.
Keefe was more than a one-trick pony, lobbing 32 service aces — second most on the team. Getting it done on the defensive side of the ball as well, the captain was tied for third on the team with 43 blocks and contributed a respectable 219 digs. This season, it wasn’t uncommon to see Keefe go up for a block or dive to the ground for a dig, then immediately shift to offense and smash a kill home. -Powicki
Accolades
Three players — all offensive specialists — earned accolades from national and conference organizations.
Keefe earned an Honorable Mention for the East Coast All-Region team from the American Volleyball Coaches Association. Keefe, by all accounts, had a stellar season in 2024. The Blue Devils also saw two highly-anticipated freshmen recognized by the ACC this season.
Freshman middle blocker Breonna Goss was twice named ACC Freshman of the Week, Sept 9 and Sept. 30. Her first award came after a three-game home series in which Duke defeated Davidson and FIU. During the Davidson victory, Goss recorded the highest hitting percentage of .684 and second-highest number of kills in the match at 13. Her second award came after the Blue Devils opened ACC play with two wins at home against Boston College and Syracuse. Over the weekend, Goss tallied 20 kills against just two attacking errors.
Meanwhile, Williams was voted to the 2024 ACC All-Freshman team at the conclusion of the season. The Mountain View, Calif., native showed early promise with a strong offensive showing, but played mostly a quiet season until a breakout performance against Wake Forest Oct. 11 in which she logged 16 kills — tied for her career high — and 11 digs for her first and only career double-double.
“Taylor has gotten a good amount of time earlier in the season, but certainly she's finding her moments to really step up and make a difference,” Nagel said of Williams’ mid-season surge. “Just like she did against Wake Forest.”
Williams finished the season with the team’s second-highest kill count of 208, second only to Keefe. She also logged the team’s second-high attempts with 690. -Sizemore
Get The Chronicle straight to your inbox
Signup for our weekly newsletter. Cancel at any time.