With the spring season underway, The Chronicle is polling readers every week via its Sportswrap newsletter to highlight one Blue Devil athlete’s outstanding performance. This week, the honor goes to Ellie Coleman of Duke women’s tennis:
When a match comes down to the wire, you always want Ellie Coleman on your side.
The senior women’s tennis player has been an instrumental part of Duke’s 10-match win streak, emerging victorious in all but two of her completed singles matches in 2025.
But Coleman also knows when to make it count for her team.
“I know this team is capable of big things, and we’ve been proving that the past couple weeks,” Coleman said.
This season alone, the Midland, Mich., native has been responsible for three match-clinching wins against top-10 opponents, including her first-ever career win at No. 4 North Carolina this past Wednesday. After the Blue Devils lost two of their three doubles matches, Coleman knew she had to make her time on the court count. After a game full of long rallies and never-ending sets against Claire Hill of the Tar Heels, Coleman helped secure Duke’s first win in Chapel Hill, N.C., since 2011.
Watching her match, one would never know that this time last year, Coleman was fighting to recover from a season-ending injury.
“I’m just so grateful to be healthy and able to compete this season after being out for last season,” Coleman said. “I’m trying to enjoy each moment as it comes and make the most of it.”
Coleman is just as tenacious in the classroom as she is on the court. The 5-foot-7 athlete participated in a six-week summer internship through Duke’s CAPE (Collegiate Athlete Premedical Experience) Program. CAPE provides female athletes at Duke with the resources and advice needed to manage a pre-medical course load with the demands of being a Division I athlete.
Though Coleman finds most of her success in singles play, she is one of two members of the women's tennis program currently nationally ranked in both singles and doubles competition. Coleman sits at No. 125 in ITA singles, and alongside freshman phenom Irina Balus, she ranks 13th in doubles play.
Look to see Coleman and the rest of the ninth-ranked Blue Devils take on No. 61 SMU at home in Ambler Tennis Stadium this Sunday, March 30.
Get to know Coleman
Favorite pre-match meal: Chicken and rice
Favorite athletics memory: Winning the ACC tournament in 2022
Favorite hobby outside of sport: Any outdoor activity (mountain biking, scuba diving, hiking)
Favorite song: “Bummerland” by AJR
Favorite class at Duke: Econ 101 with Dr. Medema
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