DURHAM, N.C.—The Duke men's lacrosse team comes in at No. 5 in the Nike/US Lacrosse preseason poll, the second of three preseason top 20 lists for the 2020 campaign. The Blue Devils were picked sixth in the Inside Lacrosse Face-Off Yearbook.
US Lacrosse put 2019 NCAA semifinalist Penn State at the No. 1 slot, while reigning NCAA Champion Virginia at No. 2. Yale, Maryland and the Blue Devils round out the preseason top five. Duke will play eight of US Lacrosse's preseason top 20, including five of the top 10.
Duke, under the winningest Division I men's lacrosse coach in NCAA history in John Danowski, returns 73 percent of its scoring from last season as well as a solid collection of one of the nation's top defenses.