By Morgan Pruchniewski, Duke Athletics Communications Student Assistant
DURHAM —
A fixture of the Blue Devils for 28 seasons, Jamie Ashworth has been a defining part of the Duke women’s tennis program. As one of the winningest women’s tennis coaches in the nation, he took his legacy to new heights after clinching his 600th win against Illinois this past weekend.
Ashworth became head coach at Duke in 1997 and since then has established the Blue Devils as a powerhouse program. He helped lead the Blue Devils to the program’s first NCAA Championship in 2009 and the 10th overall national trophy in school history. He has led the squad to the championship match twice and the semifinals 11 times. He’s championed 18 20-win seasons and 24 consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances.
In conference action, Ashworth has guided the Blue Devils to nine ACC Championships and 12 ACC regular season titles. He was also part of a 116-match win streak in ACC play from 1989 through 2000.
Over the years, Ashworth added to his impressive coaching resume with two NCAA Individual Champions, two NCAA National Players of the Year, two Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) National Team Indoor Championships, four National Rookies of the Year, 44 All-ACC selections, 31 All-Americans and six Grand Slam Champions.
Last Saturday, Ashworth added another major accomplishment to his coaching resume after defeating the Illinois Fighting Illini, 4-2, in Sheffield Indoor Tennis Center. With the win, Ashworth became the fastest NCAA Division I women’s tennis coach to score 600 wins, doing so in only 747 matches.
“It wasn’t an easy one tonight either for us,” said Ashworth after the match. “I had no idea [about it being my 600th win] to be honest with you. Someone mentioned it to me yesterday and I had no clue.”
Ashworth ranks fourth nationally among active coaches with 600 wins and is just the seventh NCAA Division I coach to reach the 600-win ledger.
The culture of excellence that Ashworth has created for the Blue Devils is not only evident from his unparalleled record but also from his national recognition. Ashworth earned ACC Coach of the Year…
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