Courtesy: Duke Athletics
DURHAM – Duke head coach Dan Colella and the Blue Devil swimming and diving program are thrilled to announce the schedule for the 2021-22 season.
Colella announced Tuesday the upcoming 2021-22 slate, which is highlighted by four home meets. Duke’s schedule features dual meets against eight men’s and women’s squads that earned top-25 finishes at the 2021 NCAA Championships.
“We are both extremely excited and thankful to be able to swim a full schedule this coming year,” Colella said. “We have a few new additions, as well as a couple of teams we have not swam in a while. There is no doubt that it is one of the most competitive schedules we have comprised and I know this team will be ready to compete on the opening day till the conclusion of the season.”
OPENING ON THE ROAD
Duke opens the 2021-22 season on the road at Virginia Tech. The Blue Devils open against the Hokies for the second consecutive year, falling to Virginia Tech on the men’s side 120.5-171.5 while the women tied 150-150, a season ago.
BLUE DEVILS HOST FOUR MEETS
Duke will host four meets at Taishoff Aquatics Pavilion this season. The Blue Devils will face UNC Wilmington and Boston College on Oct. 29-30, Georgia Tech on Nov. 6, Queens and Tennessee on Jan. 8 and North Carolina on Jan. 28. Duke’s final home contest of the season against North Carolina will serve as the program’s Senior Day.
The four home meets in the year are the most in a single season since 2015-16 when Duke also hosted four.
LOCAL ACTION
The end of November will see Duke’s squads compete at the Wolfpack Invitational in Greensboro, N.C., Nov. 18-20. The meet will close out the fall portion of the schedule.
Following the program’s annual training trip in December, action picks back up with a home meet against Queens and Tennessee on Jan. 8. The local meets continue in January as Duke travels to Raleigh to take on NC State on Jan. 15 before hosting the Tar Heels for Senior Day on Jan. 28.
THE RETURN TO BLACKSBURG
Duke will close out the regular season in Blacksburg, participating in the Hokie Invitational Feb. 4-6. The meet will be the Blue Devils’ final tune-up before the combined ACC Championships in Atlanta, Ga.
COMBINED ACC CHAMPIONSHIP
For the first time under head coach Dan Colella, the ACC Championship meet will take place the same week for both the men and the women. The five-day meet, set for Feb. 15-19 in Atlanta, Ga., will hold the women’s ACC Championship and Men’s ACC Championship simultaneously at the McAuley Aquatic Center. The McAuley Aquatic Center was originally built for the 1996 Olympic Games and is the current home of the Georgia Tech swimming and diving program.
POSTSEASON PUSH
Following the conference meet, Duke’s will shift its gaze to the NCAA postseason. Select Blue Devils will participate in the Bull Dawg Invite in Athens, Ga., Feb. 25-26 to attempt to better their times for NCAA ‘A’ cuts and ‘B’ cuts. In last season’s last chance meet, Duke saw two school records fall when senior Matthew Whelan recorded a 1:42.41 in the 200 butterfly and classmate David Hallaron touched in 4:22.33 in the 500 freestyle.
Duke’s divers will participate in the Zone B Diving Championships March 5-9 in Atlanta, Ga., with hopes of qualifying for the NCAA Championships. The Women’s NCAA Championships will take place March 16-19 with the Men’s NCAA Championships to follow March 23-26. Both meets will be hosted at McAuley Aquatic Center in Atlanta, Ga.
2021-22 DUKE SWIMMING & DIVING SCHEDULE
OCTOBER
9 – Blue vs. White Intrasquad
22 – at Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Va., 3 p.m.
29-30 – vs. UNC Wilmington and Boston College, Durham, N.C., 5 p.m. Friday, 11 a.m. Saturday
NOVEMBER
6 – Georgia Tech, Durham, N.C., 11 a.m.
18-20 – at Wolfpack Invitational, Greensboro, N.C., All Day
JANUARY
8 – vs. Queens University of Charlotte and Tennessee, Durham, N.C., 11 a.m.
15 – at NC State, Raleigh, N.C., TBD
28 – vs. North Carolina, Durham, N.C., TBD
FEBRUARY
4-6 – at Hokie Invitational, Blacksburg, Va., TBD
15-19 – at Men’s and Women’s ACC Championships, Atlanta, Ga., All Day
25-26 – at Bull Dawg Invitational, Athens, Ga., All Day
MARCH
5-9 – at NCAA Zone B Diving Championships, Atlanta, Ga., All Day
16-19 – at Women’s NCAA Championships, Atlanta, Ga., All Day
23-26 – at Men’s NCAA Championships, Atlanta, Ga., All Day
