Dan Burt, the veteran women’s basketball coach at Duquesne, has kept in touch for nearly 30 years with a Shenandoah Valley hoop mentor.
And that friendship has paid dividends for Burt’s global roster at the Atlantic 10 school – with a former Turner Ashby High star joining the Dukes this season.
About two years ago, Burt saw a post from Mandy Leeth, who has been part of the coaching staff at TA as an assistant. “She posted on Facebook a picture of the team,” said Burt, a former assistant at West Virginia. “There were all these 5-foot-8 girls, and then this one that was 6-5. I sent Mandy a message and asked, who is that?”
That tall woman was Raevin Washington, the Valley District Player of the Year as a senior at TA during the 2023-2024 season.
By then Washington had committed to Mount St. Mary’s, a Division I program in Maryland. But she never played for the school. “It was not a good fit. She sat the year out,” Burt noted.
When the transfer portal opened last spring, Burt was prepared. Washington is now on the roster at Duquesne as a freshman forward, and in her first college game, she got the start in an 89-60 Duquesne win over St. Francis (Pa.) on Monday, scoring 15 points on 6-of-10 shooting, with five rebounds in 20 minutes.
Burt has high hopes for Washington, who is related to former Harrisonburg High, UVA, and NBA star Ralph Sampson on her mother’s side.
“She is incredibly gifted. In the 19 years I have coached (at Duquesne), she has more potential than any player I have had,” Burt said. “She has to realize that potential. She had a great summer and was really focused every day. We are really excited for what she can do for us.”
Burt has sent more than 20 players to the professional ranks overseas, and going into this season, players from 28 different countries have suited up for Duquesne. The roster this season includes players from Serbia, Senegal, Australia, Germany, French Guinea and the United States.
Catherine Sykes, the sister of Mandy Leeth, was a standout basketball player at TA and one of the best players in the state. She played in nine games in her first two seasons at West Virginia, during a time Burt was an assistant coach there.
Kinder ended her college career at JMU during the 2002-2003 season, when she played in nine games and averaged 7.6 minutes and 1.9 points per outing.
The father of the Kinder sisters is the late Tom Kinder, the former athletic director and baseball coach at Bridgewater College. He died in 2001 and went into the Bridgewater Hall of Fame the following year.
Another long-time friend of Burt is Mark Griffin, who has worked for several years at Bridgewater College.
“Mark is one of the best human beings I have met in my life. A man of great faith,” Burt said.
Notes
- Duquesne plays a conference game Jan. 11 at VCU in Richmond, then travels to the Spiders of Richmond on Jan. 28. The Dukes will host defending Atlantic 10 champion George Mason on Feb. 28 in their regular-season finale.
- Burt was also an assistant coach at UNC Wilmington, Bucknell and Duquesne before becoming the head coach of the Dukes in 2013. He went to West Liberty in West Virginia.
- Duquesne is 1-1 all-time against Virginia. The Dukes won 74-63 in Charlottesville in the last meeting, in 2017. Duquesne was picked to finish eighth this season in the Atlantic 10.
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Chris Graham
