Duke softball coach Marissa Young earns first ACC Coach of the Year award in school history

Duke softball coach Marissa Young, in her eighth year, coached the Blue Devils to a 44-6 record with 20 conference wins and three ACC award-winning players.

For the first time in school history, Duke took home ACC Softball Coach of the Year honors on Wednesday.

Blue Devils coach Marissa Young, in her eighth season in charge of the program, guided Duke to a 44-6 record. Duke won 20 of its 24 conference games, losing only a single series the entire season, and ended the year on a five-game win streak.

Young’s team only lost three times at Duke Softball Stadium, and Duke won 15 of its 17 road games.

The Blue Devils also won their first regular-season conference title and, earlier in the season, reached the No. 1 spot in Softball America’s rankings for the first time in school history.

“Look at God! Won’t He do it under the most difficult circumstances!” Young wrote on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter, after the announcement. “My amazing staff, my parents & my team made this possible!

Young also coached three players to conference awards during the 2024 season. Claire Davidson and Jala Wright unanimously won the ACC Player of the Year and ACC Pitcher of the Year honors, respectively, while sophomore second baseman Aminah Vega took home the ACC Defensive Player of the Year trophy.