Duckworth enters his third season with the Eagles after joining the program in December of 2017. A veteran of 11 combined years of collegiate coaching and a professional career, he oversees the program's goalkeepers and also serves as the recruiting coordinator.
In 2019, the Eagles captured the ASUN Regular Season Championship, marking the ninth time that the team has achieved such a feat in its 13 years of existence. In addition to the team success, the squad had multiple players that received top marks during the postseason. Evdokia Popadinova (ASUN Player of the Year) became the second two-time All-American in program history, as she was named to the Third Team by the United Soccer Coaches. In addition to the athletic recognition, she was named a Second Team Academic All-American by the United Soccer Coaches. The Eagles also had two other student-athletes capture Academic All-American recognition in Lindsey Patton (ASUN Defensive Player of the Year) and Opal Curless. Patton received Third Team honors from the United Soccer Coaches, while Curless was named to CoSIDA's Second Team. ASUN Second Team All-Conference selection Melissa Weck also had another solid year under Duckworth’s guidance. The four-year starter ended her campaign with a 0.77 goals against average (third in program history) a save percentage of .803 (third in program history).
During his first season with FGCU, Duckworth worked directly with the goalkeepers and assisted the team in various areas to put up some impressive numbers. Melissa Weck, who garnered ASUN Second Team All-Conference honors, had an impressive year in goal, as she only conceded 11 goals en route to earning a 0.59 goals against average. Duckworth also played a large role in recruiting second team all-american forward Evdokia Popadinova, who led the team with 35 points. As a whole, FGCU closed out the 2018 season ranked in the top-10 nationally in four different statistical categories: assists per game (2nd, 2.74), points per game (4th, 7.58), total assists (5th, 52) and scoring offense (9th, 2.42).
Prior to joining FGCU, Duckworth was the assistant coach at East Carolina University where he trained the goalkeepers, backline, and was the recruiting coordinator. In 2017, ECU produced its best start in program history with a 4-0-1 mark and went 5-2-2 in non-conference play, which was capped by the Pirates' first tie against a top-five opponent in program history: a 0-0 draw with No. 5 Virginia. Junior, Courtney Cash was named All-AAC Second Team at the end of the year marking the fourth-straight season ECU had an all-conference selection.
Duckworth, a Parker, Texas native, also previously served as an assistant at FIU, Arkansas, Winthrop, and at his alma mater UNCW. He added value in various areas at each institution during the progression of his coaching career. Along with coaching at the collegiate level, Duckworth has also coached with Sporting Arkansas, North Carolina ODP, Discoveries Soccer Club, and Charlotte United.
Following his career as a Seahawk at UNCW, where he earned All-Region honors and secured the program record in goals against average (1.07), Duckworth signed professionally with the Wilmington Hammerheads within the United Soccer League (Second Division). Duckworth's career then took him to Charleston to play for the Battery and finally with Charlotte as a member of the Eagles, all within the USL. During his playing career, Duckworth won the USL Championship in 2012, was a runner-up in 2013, and won multiple youth club titles with the prestigious Solar SC out of Dallas, Texas.
Updated 4/1/2020
