Coach Duffy is in his eighth year as pole vault coach. As vault coach, his vaulters have broken school records five times while earning 11 All-Midwest Conference honors.
In 2023, standout Cade Gray jumped personal bests of 16'5.5/5.02m indoors and 16'11/5.16m outdoors, improving on school records he set as a freshman. Gray also won both indoor and outdoor conference champion titles, and placed 5th at the indoor NCAA championship, earning All-American honors, while recording the highest vault in NCAA DIII that season. In the following year, Isaac San Diego followed by winning both the indoor and outdoor pole vault titles. For the indoor conference meet of 2024, the men's pole vault scored more points than any other event for Ripon, and placed a school record four vaulters for points.
In 2021, Jackie Zeman broke both the indoor and outdoor school records clearing 11-0.25 and 11-07, respectively. Outdoors, Zeman ranked 31st in NCAA Division III which earned her USTFCCCA All-Academic honors for the first time in her career. During the 2018 season, Ripon had three all-Midwest Conference performances in the pole vault from a pair of freshmen, Zeman and Brittny Brown.
Prior to his vault position, he coached as an assistant cross country and track and field distance coach for Ripon College from 1998-2000. Notably, his all freshman men's medley relay set the indoor conference record at the time. In 2001 he assumed the head coaching position at Ripon High School, where he served for eleven years. In his tenure there, his teams won a combined six conference championships, nine regional championships and two sectional championships. In 2006 his boys team won the DII power ranking title and took home the state championship trophy, scoring sixty points to win. His program also produced eight individual state champions.
Coach Duffy is a Level 1 USATF certified coach, and in 2006 he was named WISTCA DII Coach of the Year.
