Duffy Sisters Bond Over Shared Love of Lacrosse

“Competitive” is a word sisters Brigid and Bayley Duffy used to describe each other.

“Growing up, Brigid was always faster than me and I looked up to her and chased after her,” Bayley said. “That really made me gain such a competitive side to me, too.”

It shouldn’t be a surprise that the sisters are excelling in Division I lacrosse.

Bayley and Brigid will take the field in the NCAA tournament on Friday, as Bayley and her UMass Minutewomen will play at sixth-seeded Navy at 3 p.m. Eastern. Brigid and her Army West Point Black Knights square off against Fairfield at Johns Hopkins at 6 p.m.

Only a 45-minute drive between the locations allows their parents to make it to both games.

“Our families will be able to support both of us on the national stage, which is amazing,” Brigid said.

It’s a full-circle moment for their parents, who were both athletes — but neither played lacrosse.

“My mom ran track and cross country at Army,” Bayley. “My dad played hockey at Canisius. Growing up, we would play every sport we could.”

Brigid is a senior midfielder for the Black Knights and a Tewaaraton Award finalist as one of the nation’s top players. Bayley is a redshirt freshman goalie for the Minutewomen and an All-Conference honoree.

Their lacrosse careers were born late in their time in Germany, where they lived for a few years. In Germany, they focused on soccer — and it wasn’t until the end of their time there, and early in their time in the United States, that lacrosse truly stuck.

“Lacrosse was pretty big [in our hometown of Watertown, N.Y.], so we picked it up,” Bayley said. “We realized how fast-paced it was, so we stuck to that and had a great community around us.”

The sisters played on the same Queensbury team in high school. Brigid played midfield, while Bayley was a defender who would jump into goal as well.

“We got to play alongside each other, which was great, because you can really rely on that girl for so much on the lacrosse field,” Bayley said.

According to Brigid, Bayley would “lock down” their defense.

“We ended up making it to the New York State Championship, largely due to her,” Brigid said. “But later in that state championship game, she ended up switching into goal, just because she is so elite. The next year, she ended up fully switching to goalie, and with only two full years of playing goalie in high school lacrosse, was able to pursue Division I lacrosse at UMass.”

Brigid will never forget one game, a state semifinal win.

“Bayley was playing defense and my other sister, Kady (who is headed to North Carolina next year), scored the game-winning goal, and we were all running on the field screaming and jumping.

“Being in that moment with two of my sisters on the same team was so special.”

Flash forward to college, where Brigid and Bayley are each other’s biggest supporters. They don’t see each other too much with their busy schedules, but they keep in touch and see each other over breaks.

“Having someone of her caliber to go train with you, I am so grateful for her,” Bayley said. “Transitioning off a redshirt year and going into a starting position as a goalie is so hard, but she definitely helped me adjust and understand what a goalie needs to do and how they need to step up.”

Brigid cherishes those moments with Bayley and her family.

“Being at West Point, I don't get a lot of free time, but when I’m able to go home and see my family over break, it's amazing,” she said. “And the first thing we always think of is, ‘Let's go play lacrosse’.”

“Bayley will say where she wants me to shoot from,” Brigid said. “She does whatever she can to up her level of play, and she's also helping me, too. She tells me what shots are hardest for goalies to save.”

It has been a special season for each of the Duffys. Bayley is in her first season playing and starting. She is third nationally in save percentage (51.9) and fourth in goals against average (7.20).

“I credit all my success to the people around me,” Bayley said. “There are so many people who play in front of me who give me the chance to make great saves.”

Bayley also received, as she said, great transparency from her coaches about the redshirt process.

“There was a great starting goalie, Catrina Tobin, in front of me last year who taught me so much and led with such compassion, so I was able to develop into a better player than when I came in,” Bayley said.

Meanwhile, Brigid has enjoyed a stellar collegiate career and has emerged as one of the nation’s best players this year, currently owning 70 goals and 28 assists. She is fifth in the country in goals per game and eighth in points per contest. She is also a member of the U.S. Women’s National Team that will compete for gold in Tokyo this summer.

“I don't think I have taken the time to take it all in,” she said. “I'm honored to be in the position that I'm in right now. I owe so much to this academy for allowing me to reach these moments. I wouldn't have been able to do any of it without the girls by my side, pushing me every single day to be my best and putting me in the best position possible.”

Brigid is referring to her West Point teammates. That support is also true of Bayley.

“We’re calling frequently and texting all the time, especially in season,” Bayley said. “We have so much to talk about when it comes to lacrosse. If I'm not playing, I'm watching her play, and so is the rest of my team. Everyone understands how close she is to me, so a lot of my teammates will even watch her games with me. After the MAC Championship with my team, I was walking around with my phone in hand watching the Army-Navy game.”

On Friday, it will be Bayley’s turn to face Navy.

“[Friday] runs a little bit deeper, the fact that Bayley will be playing Navy in the first round,” Brigid said. “I told her I’ll give you all the scout I can to help put her and her team in the best position possible.”

“I’m really excited for Army’s run as well,” Bayley said, who has several friends on the Black Knights.

If you were wondering, the Duffys wouldn’t face each other until the national championship game if both teams advance that far.

“Out of her four years, she hasn’t been able to play me,” Bayley said. “I would love the opportunity to play each other.”

No matter what happens in the NCAA tournament, it’s pretty clear the Duffy family, with 10 siblings, is on the rise in the sport of lacrosse.

“Brigid is definitely paving the way,” Bayley said. “I'm trying my best to find success. We all play different positions. Our parents have done so much for us – driving us to tournaments and trying to make it to every single one of our games when we're all over the place with NCAAs.”

“There’s definitely a lot more of us coming down the line, but based on the numbers, there's a pretty high probability [for the Duffy name to continue to grow],” Brigid said. “But I’m just very excited to continue to cheer Bayley on, and can't wait to see Kady crush it in the ACC.”

Lacrosse fans, take note. The competitive Duffy family will be on display Friday — and for years to come.