Duke University

Duke Athletics
Box 90555 Durham, NC 27708

Division 1 North Carolina Southeast

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Kerstin Kimmel

The only head coach in Duke women’s lacrosse history, Kerstin Kimel has led the program from its inception in 1996, molding the Blue Devils into one of the nation’s elite teams.

In Kimel’s 29 seasons at the helm of Duke women’s lacrosse, she has guided the Blue Devils to seven national semifinals, four ACC regular season titles, an ACC Tournament Championship and 21 NCAA Tournament appearances.

A five-time ACC Coach of the Year, Kimel has overseen 43 All-America selections making up for 111 honors, 98 all-region honorees and 89 All-ACC picks. Seven of her former players have represented their countries on the world's stage, competing at the 2009, 2013 and 2017 World Cups. The Blue Devils have achieved equal success in the classroom during Kimel’s tenure, collecting 130 Intercollegiate Women's Lacrosse Coaches Association Academic Honor Roll accolades since 1997.

Kimel recorded her 300th career victory Feb. 7, 2020 in a win over Gardner-Webb. She is one of just eight active Division I head coaches with 300 or more wins.

Kimel was honored with an IWLCA Service Award in November, 2016 for her work as co-chair of the NCAA Division I Legislation Committee to slow down early recruiting within the sport. She was presented with the IWLCA's highest award, the Diane Geppi-Aikens Memorial Award, in November, 2015.

Duke returned to the NCAA semifinals to punctuate an outstanding 16-5 campaign in 2015. Led by a veteran group of eight seniors, the Blue Devils concluded the season ranked fourth in the final national poll. Attacker Kerrin Maurer became Duke’s career assist leader and garnered first team All-America recognition from the IWLCA. Goalkeeper Kelsey Duryea headlined the Blue Devils’ three All-America selections in 2016, and concluded an outstanding career as one of just three goalkeepers in ACC history to top 600 saves for her career. She ranked among the nation’s leaders in save percentage while anchoring Duke to an 11-9 ledger and a trip to the NCAA second round.

Draw control specialist Olivia Jenner became the program's all-time leader in the category during the 2018 campaign and continued to climb the NCAA record book as a senior, wrapping up her career with 512 draw controls. She also earned second team All-America recognition from the IWLCA in 2019 and helped the Blue Devils lead the nation in draw control percentage.

The Blue Devils recorded 14 or more wins four times from 2009 to 2014, advancing to the national quarterfinals on five occasions and the semifinals in 2011. Under Kimel’s watch, Duke produced 13 All-America selections during that time, while Emma Hamm (2011) and Carolyn Davis (2009) were named finalists for the Tewaaraton Trophy. Led by Davis and Caroline Cryer, the 2009 squad rewrote the program’s offensive record book, totaling team highs in goals scored (313), assists (150) and points (463). In 2013, Duryea became the first goalkeeper in program history to receive All-America recognition as a rookie, rounding out the season ranked top-10 nationally in save percentage and saves per game. A two-time first team All-American on defense, Taylor Virden wrapped up her senior campaign (2014) ranked second in program history in career draw controls.

From 2004 to 2008, Duke put together one of the most successful stretches in program history, advancing to four consecutive national semifinals from 2005 to 2008 and earning at least a share of four-straight ACC regular season titles from 2004 to 2007. During that span, the Blue Devils placed 21 players on both All-America and all-region lists, in addition to posting three Tewaaraton finalists. Kimel led Duke to a 13-8 overall record and the Blue Devils’ fourth-straight NCAA semifinal appearance in 2008, earning womenslax.com Coach of the Year honors for her efforts.

Led by Tewaaraton Trophy recipient and two-time ACC Player of the Year Katie Chrest, the 2005 and 2006 Duke squads combined for a 35-7 overall record, including a program-best 18 victories in 2006, a 7-2 mark in the ACC and two conference regular season titles. After seven consecutive NCAA Tournaments bids, the 2005 installment earned a trip to the national semifinals for the second time in program history to ignite Duke’s string of four straight appearances.

From 2000 to 2002, the Blue Devils advanced to three consecutive NCAA Tournament quarterfinals, and in 2001, made the program’s first ACC Championship game. However, success did not always come easy, as Duke’s 12th women’s varsity program began its inaugural season in 1996 with four-straight losses before earning the Devils’ first win -- a 10-6 victory over UMBC on March 18, 1996. Duke began its rapid ascension the following season, recording an 8-8 mark before breaking through in 1998 with the program’s first NCAA Tournament bid. The 1999 season took Duke to new heights as the Blue Devils achieved the program’s first trip to the NCAA semifinals.

Early Years

Prior to her arrival at Duke, Kimel was the head coach at Davidson College, leading the newly-created Wildcats program to a 4-8 record in 1994 as one of the nation’s youngest head coaches in her first and only season at Davidson.

Kimel was no stranger to NCAA Division I women’s lacrosse before her time at Davidson, having played at the University of Maryland from 1990-93. During her career, she led the Terrapins to four consecutive national semifinal appearances and the 1992 NCAA National Championship. The Havertown, Pa., native was a two-time All-America selection and the 1993 NCAA National Defensive Player of the Year, appearing in Sports Illustrated’s "Faces in the Crowd." Kimel graduated from Maryland in 1993 with a bachelor’s degree in speech communications.

Prior to her collegiate career, Kimel was a standout at Haverford High School, earning first team All-Central League, All-Delaware County and USWLA All-America honors. Her numerous accomplishments have landed her in both the Haverford Hall of Fame and the Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame - Delaware County.

Kimel has also been a prominent figure on the international level as a member of the U.S. Elite Team from 1992-96 and as an alternate for the U.S. national team that captured a gold medal at the 1993 World Cup.

IWLCA Involvement

In addition, Kimel served as chair of the IWLCA Growth Committee from 1999-2000 and as Chair of the NCAA South Region Selection Committee. From 1998-2002, she was on the selection committee for the U.S. Elite/Development squads, also working as an assistant coach for the U.S. Development squad from 2000-03. Kimel has also worked as Chair of the IWLCA/USL Division I All-America committee and completed a four-year term as a member of the NCAA Division I Women’s Lacrosse Committee in 2007. In 2006, she became co-chair of the IWLCA External Relations Committee and served on the Tewaaraton award selection committee in 2008. During the summer of 2008, Kimel was elected to the IWLCA Board of Directors and acts as a Division I representative.

Most recently, Kimel served as Co-Chair of the IWLCA Recruiting Issues Committee from 2014-16 and is currently the Chair of the IWLCA Division I Legislative Committee and the South Region FBS representative on the NCAA Division I Women's Lacrosse Committee.

The Kimel Family Tree

Kimel’s family tree includes many outstanding athletes, beginning with her father, Mike Manning, who played basketball at West Chester University, and her mother, Sallie Manning, who was a member of the tennis and field hockey squads at West Chester. Both her brother, Mike, and husband, Jack, played baseball at Western Carolina before moving on to play for the Texas Rangers organization, while her sister, Lindsay, played lacrosse at James Madison University and served as an assistant coach for the 2003 and 2007 World Champion U.S. under-19 teams. Her extended family also includes five collegiate basketball players - uncles Ed (Villanova) and Chris Manning (Philadelphia College of Textile) and cousins Alicia Manning (Lafayette), Marissa Manning (Kings College) and Christina Manning (Muhlenberg College) - one collegiate swimmer - uncle John Manning (Villanova) - two baseball players - cousins Brian Manning (Villanova) and Pat Manning (Atlanta Braves minor league) - and one hockey standout - brother-in-law Matt Mulhern (Boston College).

Kimel’s eldest daughter, Frances “Caroline”, continued the trend of being a collegiate athlete as a member of the East Carolina women’s lacrosse team. At East Carolina, Caroline reunited with former Duke assistant coach and East Carolina head coach Amanda Moore. On March 10, 2020, Kerstin was able to see her daughter play collegiate lacrosse for the first time as she coached against her in Duke’s game against East Carolina.

Kimel and her husband Jack reside in Durham with their three children - daughters Frances "Caroline" and Claire and son Russell McKinley "Mac."

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Nick Williams

Nick Williams joined the Duke women's lacrosse program in August of 2019 and was elevated to associate head coach in September of 2023. He previously served as an assistant coach.

Although his first season at Duke was cut short due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Williams helped the Blue Devil defense solidify its place among national leaders in defensive statistics. Under Williams, Duke averaged 12.44 caused turnovers per game, leading the ACC and ranking sixth nationally. In addition, Duke totaled 11 student-athletes with five or more caused turnovers. Senior Callie Humphrey led the team in caused turnovers (16) and ground balls (18) on her way to being named Third Team Inside Lacrosse Media All-America.

Williams arrived in Durham following six seasons at Georgetown. He served as a volunteer assistant coach for one campaign and an assistant coach for four seasons before being elevated to the role of associate head coach prior to the 2019 campaign.

During his six years with the Hoyas, Williams helped guide the program to a 57-55 ledger, including an impressive 34-10 mark in BIG EAST play. His time on the Hilltop was capped by the Hoyas’ run to the 2019 BIG EAST Championship, as the squad defeated Denver, 9-8, in double overtime to claim the program’s first conference tournament title since 2010. Georgetown went on to advance to the second round of the 2019 NCAA Tournament.

The 2019 Georgetown squad featured three on the Intercollegiate Women’s Lacrosse Coaches Association (IWLCA) All-South Region teams, as well as one second team All-American. During his time with the Hoyas, Williams tutored 10 all-region honorees to go along with 35 All-BIG EAST selections and two BIG EAST Midfielders of the Year.

Prior to arriving at Georgetown, Williams served as an assistant coach at Florida, overseeing the Gators’ defense. During the 2013 campaign, Florida went 18-3 and earned a bid to the NCAA Tournament.

Williams’ previous coaching experience also includes two seasons as an assistant coach at Notre Dame (2010-12), where he worked with the team’s goalkeepers and defenders, and one season at his alma mater, Towson. At Towson, Williams assisted with both the offensive and defensive units, overseeing the 2010 CAA Player of the Year and three first team All-CAA selections. Prior to returning to his alma mater, Williams spent the spring of 2009 as an assistant coach at Pomona College in Claremont, Calif., and served as the running backs coach at his high school alma mater – Calvert Hall College High School in Baltimore, Md., – during the fall of 2008.

A native of Baltimore, Williams was a four-year member of the men’s lacrosse program, helping the Tigers to a pair of CAA titles. He played in 61 career contests, recording 29 goals and 22 assists. Williams also excelled for Towson’s football program, rounding out his career on the gridiron as the fifth-leading rusher in school history with 1,985 yards.

Williams graduated from Towson in 2008 with a bachelor’s degree in sports management. He received a master’s degree in sports industry management from Georgetown’s School of Continuing Studies in 2017. Always wanting to learn more off the lacrosse field, Williams earned his Master of Arts in Liberal Studies at Duke in the spring of 2024.

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Brooke Bailey

Brooke Bailey (formerly Griffin) joined the Duke women's lacrosse program in July, 2018 as an assistant coach. She enters her third season with the Blue Devils.

In her second season at Duke, Griffin saw the season unfortunately cut short due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Although the Blue Devils just played nine games, they were amongst national leaders in numerous offensive categories under Griffin. Duke averaged 17.67 goals per game and 18.78 draw controls per game which ranked fifth and third in the nation, respectively. Griffin led Duke's high-scoring offense to score 20+ goals in each of the first three games of the 2020 season, the first time in program history that Duke has scored 20+ in three consecutive games. Also as a team, Duke boasted eight student-athletes with 10 or more goals throughout the season, making it the only ACC school to accomplish the feat. First Team All-American Maddie Jenner followed in her sister's footsteps, taking the lead for Duke in the circle during her sophomore season. She tallied 96 draw controls in just nine games and her 10.56 per game ranked second in the country. Griffin also helped develop freshman attacker Caroline DeBellis as she led the team with 32 points and 19 assists (third in the ACC) on her way to being named to the All-ILWomen Rookie Team.

Senior attacker and draw specialist Olivia Jenner earned second team All-America recognition during Griffin's first season at Duke. Jenner also received first team All-South Region and All-ACC accolades and solidified her place as Duke's all-time career draw controls leader with 512. The Blue Devils' draw unit led the country in draw control percentage (/657) and ranked second in the draw controls per game (18.74) category.

A member of the U.S. national team, Griffin came to Durham from Towson, where she spent the 2018 campaign as a volunteer assistant coach during the Tigers’ run to the NCAA second round.

A native of Annapolis, Md., Griffin completed an outstanding collegiate career at Maryland in 2015. She twice earned first team All-America laurels from the Intercollegiate Women’s Lacrosse Coaches Association (IWLCA) and was the Big Ten Attack Player of the Year and a Tewaaraton Award nominee as a senior. Griffin led the Terrapins to back-to-back national titles, serving as a team captain on the 2014 and 2015 championship squads. She graduated ranked fifth in program history in career goals (197) and tied for sixth in career points (279).

Griffin has been a member of the U.S. national team since 2015, helping Team USA capture its third consecutive World Cup title last summer in Guildford, England. She has also taken the field as a member of the Baltimore Brave of the Women’s Professional Lacrosse League.

Griffin began her coaching career at Boston College, where she was an assistant coach with the Eagles for the 2016 and 2017 campaigns. With her guidance, Boston College made trips to the NCAA Tournament both seasons, including a historic run to the championship contest in 2017.

Following her time in Newton, Griffin served as a volunteer assistant coach at Towson in 2018. This spring she saw the Tigers match the program record for wins in a season (16) and round out the year at No. 9 in the final IWLCA Division I Coaches Poll.

Griffin earned her bachelor’s degree in kinesiology from Maryland.

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Sarah Cooper

Sarah Cooper joined the Duke women's lacrosse staff in August of 2023 as an assistant coach.

Cooper comes to Durham following a successful undergraduate career at Syracuse. As one of the Orange's top defenders in recent years, she brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to the Blue Devils.

"I'm thrilled to welcome Sarah to our staff," Kimel said. "She was a fantastic player and leader during her time at Syracuse. It is already clear that she possesses a maturity and professionalism that is beyond her years and I am confident that she is going to make a significant impact on the development of our student-athletes!"

She ended her career at Syracuse ranked second on the career caused turnover list with 98 and was tabbed an IWLCA third team All-America selection after leading a Syracuse defense that held opponents to less than 10 goals seven times.

She was named a 2022 Tewaaraton Award nominee as one of five defenders named to the list of 25 players. After a standout freshman campaign, Cooper was honored as the 2019 ACC Freshman of the Year.