By Rich Palzewic
Sports Editor
GREEN BAY – Green Bay Preble senior Carley Duffney said her dream came true when she signed her National Letter of Intent Nov. 13 to play Division I college basketball at the University of South Dakota in Vermillion.
Carley, the daughter of Mary and Brett Duffney, is also a two-time WIAA Division 1 state qualifier in track and field (hurdles).
“I liked the coaches at South Dakota – they made me feel at home,” said Duffney, who describes herself as adventurous, caring and funny. “The team plays lots like I do – fast and up and down the court. It feels good to get the signing out of the way and move on. It was nice to sign up for housing and get registered.”
Duffney, who is afraid of spiders, also had Division I offers from the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay, UW-Milwaukee, North Dakota, North Dakota State and the University of Missouri-Kansas City.
Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Hornets and the rest of the Green Bay Area Public School District have been learning virtually since the beginning of the school year.
Earlier this fall, the district also moved all its fall sports to the spring and currently isn’t going forward with its winter athletics.
Even if the Hornets do play basketball this winter, Duffney, who averaged 17.5 points and 4.3 assists per Fox River Classic Conference game in 2019-20, won’t be playing because of injury.
“Not many people know this, but I tore my anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in my knee this past July in an AAU (Amateur Athletic Union) game in Indiana,” she said. “I did a Euro step on a fast break and injured it. It was tough for a few weeks before and after surgery, but now I’m doing lots of physical therapy and doing well. Even though I won’t play this season, I am looking forward to being on the bench and helping the team.”
Earlier this year, Duffney eclipsed the 1,000-point career mark and was named the FRCC Player of the Year.
Preble is led by head coach Jim Doell.
“I loved playing for Coach Doell,” said Duffney. “He’s a great coach, and I’ve been lucky to have him as my mentor. He’s always trying to get everyone better. He and I have a good understanding of each other, and he puts the team first.”
She said her most memorable sports moment was giving Bay Port its only loss during its championship season in 2019.
Duffney, who also played volleyball her freshman and sophomore years, finished seventh in the 300 hurdles at the 2019 WIAA State Track and Field Meet in La Crosse.
“Even if we have a season, I won’t be running track,” she said. “It would be about the time I could come back to competition, but with signing a Division I basketball offer and having the injury, it’s best I don’t do track. If I hadn’t gotten hurt, I would have given it another try.”
Both of Duffney’s parents are from Minnesota, and she has two older brothers, Luke and Tanner.
“My mom did basketball, volleyball, track and softball, and my dad did basketball, football and golf,” she said. “Luke is 23, and Tanner is 21. They both ran track and cross country at Preble.”
In her spare time, Duffney likes hanging out with friends and her boyfriend, playing games with her family and playing with her golden retriever dog.
She also likes chocolate ice cream with cookie dough, the app Snapchat, Christmas and Halloween, Michael Jordan and the restaurant Texas Roadhouse.
“I like candy and dressing up for Halloween,” Duffney said. “This year, I dressed up like a frat boy.”
She also said her favorite family vacation was going to California’s SeaWorld with her family when she was younger, and she’d love to visit Times Square in New York City.