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Tempe, AZ – In 1977, Bob Hansen started the men’s tennis club team at UC-Santa Cruz, and in 1980 UCSC became an NCAA Division III program. During his 31 years leading the Banana Slugs, Santa Cruz won seven NCAA D-III National Championships and three ITA Indoor titles. At one point during the 1990s, the Banana Slugs won 73 consecutive matches against D-III competition.
During his time at UCSC, Hansen coached five NCAA Singles Champions, 10 NCAA Doubles Champions, three ITA Singles Champions, six ITA Doubles Champions and 118 All-Americans. In 2005 and 2007, the Banana Slugs won the NCAA Team, Singles, and Doubles titles. Hansen was named the ITA Coach of the Year four times and awarded the ITA Coach of the Decade for the 90’s.
In 2011, Hansen took over as the head coach at Middlebury College in Vermont and coached the Panthers for nine years before transitioning to an associate head coach role before retiring in 2022. Hansen led Middlebury to the 2018 NCAA title, going 25-4, and the Panthers advanced to the NCAA semifinals or better six years in a row during one stretch. Over his nine seasons as head coach, Middlebury had a record of 163-39, won two NCAA doubles titles, an NCAA singles crown and captured ITA singles and doubles titles.
With a total of eight NCAA Division III National Team titles and having coached a combined 19 singles and doubles NCAA champions, the ITA is honored to welcome Bob Hansen to the ITA Men’s Collegiate Tennis Hall of Fame.
The ceremony to celebrate Bob and the other members of the Class of 2025, will take place in Saint Peter, Minnesota at Gustavus Adolphus College on Thursday, February 20th at 6:00 pm. To RSVP, please contact Rachel Dagen ([email protected]) by Friday, February 7th.
About the ITA Collegiate Tennis Hall of Fame – The Intercollegiate Tennis Association Men’s and Women’s Halls of Fame aspire to preserve and celebrate the history and further the development of intercollegiate tennis through the collection of historic memorabilia and with inductions of notable players, coaches, and contributors.
About The ITA – The ITA is the governing body of college tennis and a coaches association, both an advocate and an authority for the sport and its members. The ITA is committed to serving college tennis and returning the leaders of tomorrow while promoting both the athletic and academic achievements of the collegiate tennis community. The ITA, founded in 1956, is comprised of more than 2,000 men’s and women’s varsity tennis teams representing more than 1,250 institutions, 3,000 college tennis coaches, 1,400 college tennis officials, while administering numerous regional and national championships, and the ITA College Tennis Rankings for 20,000 college varsity student-athletes across five levels of play. The ITA also bolsters an industry-leading awards program for players and coaches to honor excellence in academics, leadership, and sportsmanship. Keep up with all of the excitement around college tennis by visiting WeAreCollegeTennis.com and following the ITA on Facebook, Twitter (X), Instagram, TikTok, and LinkedIn.
