Upcoming Event: Women's Basketball versus Countdown to Craziness on October 3, 2025 at 7 p.m.
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7 p.m.
Women's Basketball
vs Countdown to Craziness
Women's Basketball
Valley, Gale
Gale Valley
- Title:
- Assistant Coach
- Email:
- glv@duaa.duke.edu
- Phone:
- (919) 613-7565
Known as one of the hardest working assistant coaches on the recruiting scene, Gale Valley enters her 18th year with the Blue Devil program. One of the lead recruiters who has helped bring in top seven recruiting classes the past eight years in a row, Valley also works extensively with the guards and scouting.
In her first nine years at Duke, Valley coached the guards and then moved to coach the post players the next five years. In 2002-03, she moved back to working with the guards and will continue to do the same in 2006-07.
Valley has been influential in guiding the careers of several successful Blue Devils over the years. She coached All-ACC point guard Kira Orr to Duke’s all-time assist record in 1997 and several top 10 marks in the Blue Devil record books. In 1998, she guided three talented guards in Hilary Howard, a first-team All-ACC and Kodak All-America honorable mention selection, Nicole Erickson, a second team All-ACC pick and Georgia Schweitzer, who was named to the ACC All-Freshman team. In 1998-99, Valley played a role in the success of 6-6 center Michele VanGorp, who went on to become Duke’s first Kodak All-America selection and first WNBA Draft pick, taken in the second round by the New York Liberty.
In 1999-00, she guided senior Peppi Browne to All-ACC first team honors after seeing action in only 20 games due to a knee injury, while in 2001-02 coached two-time All-ACC Defensive team selection Rochelle Parent and All-ACC Freshman Iciss Tillis. In 2001-02, Valley helped coach Tillis to honorable mention All-America, first team All-ACC and an ESPN The Magazine Power Forward of the Year nomination. In 2002-03, Valley coached National Player of the Year Alana Beard as well as All-ACC selection Vicki Krapohl and All-ACC Freshman Lindsey Harding. In 2004-05, Valley once again guided Beard, the consensus National Player of the Year, second team All-ACC Monique Currie and third team All-ACC Harding.
She developed another National Player of the Year candidate in Currie the last two seasons, while Lindsey Harding earned All-ACC and ACC Defensive Player of the Year last year under her watch.
Valley, along with head coach Gail Goestenkors, helped assemble the 1993 class, which ranked ninth in the nation by Blue Star Report - the first time in the history of the program a recruiting class had been ranked so high. The 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003 and 2005 freshman classes bested that mark however, as Blue Star Report ranked the 1999 class as the fourth best, Athlon Sports ranked the 2000 class No. 1 in the nation, the All-Star Girls Report ranked the 2001 class No. 1, the 2002 class was once again ranked No. 1 nationally by the All-Star Girls Report, the 2003 class was tabbed No. 1 by the Blue Star Report and No. 2 by All-Star Girls Report and the 2005-06 incoming class was listed second by both the All-Star Girls Report and Blue Star Report.
Prior to coming to Duke in 1989, Valley served as an assistant women’s basketball coach at San Jose State University. She earned a master’s degree in physical education with an emphasis in exercise physiology while coaching at the University of Delaware from 1982-84. She also worked in the coaching ranks at the University of Vermont until joining the San Jose State staff in 1986. In 1994, she was an assistant coach under Goestenkors on the ACC All-Star Team.
Valley’s seasoned basketball past began at Michigan State University, where she was a four-year letterwinner and two-time team captain for the Spartans.
Valley graduated from Michigan State in 1981 with a degree in physical education and a minor in biology and is currently a member of the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association.
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