Delaware Fightin' Blue Hens | |
---|---|
University | University of Delaware |
Conference | CAA |
NCAA | Division I |
Athletic director | Christine Rawak |
Location | Newark, Delaware |
Varsity teams | 20 |
Football stadium | Delaware Stadium |
Basketball arena | Bob Carpenter Center |
Baseball stadium | Bob Hannah Stadium |
Soccer stadium | Stuart and Suzanne Grant Stadium |
Mascot | YoUDee |
Nickname | The Blue Hens |
Fight song | The Delaware Fight Song |
Colors | Royal Blue and Gold |
Website | www |
The Delaware Fightin' Blue Hens are the athletic teams of the University of Delaware of Newark, Delaware, in the United States. The Blue Hens compete in the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) of Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) as members of the Colonial Athletic Association.
The University of Delaware sponsors teams in eight men's and thirteen women's NCAA sanctioned sports:
Men's Intercollegiate Sports
Women's Intercollegiate Sports
The Blue Hens have won eleven CAA Championships since joining in 2001: one for the women's 2004 field hockey team, the 2007, 2010, and 2011 men's lacrosse teams, the 2014 men's basketball team, the 2005, 2012, and 2013 women's basketball teams, the 2007 women's volleyball team, the 2012 men's soccer team, and the 2010 football team (shared with William & Mary). Unofficially, the women's rowing team has won the CAA title four times since 2001, placing second the other two times.
In January 2011, UD announced that men's cross country and outdoor track & field teams would be reclassified to club status, while women's golf would be added.
On November 20, 2016, the Delaware women's field hockey team won the 2016 NCAA Division I championship, defeating North Carolina, 3-2.
The women's basketball team went undefeated in CAA play in the 2011-2012 and 2012-2013 seasons under head coach Tina Martin and All-American Elena Delle Donne. The 2011-2012 team finished went 31-2 and undefeated in the CAA conference (18-0) to win the conference championship. They also won the CAA conference tournament to qualify for the CAA's automatic bid to the 2012 NCAA Women's Division I Basketball Tournament, where the Fightin' Blue Hens won their first round game against the University of Arkansas at Little Rock 73-42 before losing in the second round to the University of Kansas 70-64. This win over UALR was the first by a Delaware women's team in NCAA tournament history. The 2012-2013 team finished 32-4 overall, ranked #15 in the final AP poll. The 2012-13 team went undefeated in CAA conference play and also won the CAA conference tournament to qualify for the CAA's automatic bid to the 2013 NCAA Women's Division I Basketball Tournament, where the team won their first and second round games against West Virginia (66-53) and North Carolina (78-69) before losing in the round of 16 to Kentucky (69-62) in the 2013 NCAA Women's Division I Basketball Tournament. The 2012-2013 team featured three seniors — Elena Delle Donne (3,039 points, 5th all time in women's college basketball and a record at Delaware), Lauren Carra, and Danielle Parker (1,064 rebounds, also a career record at Delaware) — who scored 1,000 points during their careers, and point guard specialist Kayla Miller. This senior class, which includes Chelsea Craig and Jaquetta May, won more games (104) than any senior class in Delaware women's basketball history, and won two CAA Conference Championships.