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Tempe, AZ – The Intercollegiate Tennis Association (“ITA”) is pleased to announce today the 15 coaches who have been selected to participate in the 2025-26 ITA USTA College Coach Mentorship Program.
Now in the program’s sixth year, the College Coach Mentorship Program aims to develop the next generation of college tennis coaches by pairing young head and assistant coaches with some of the top veteran coaches in our sport.
With mentee selections ranging from the Division I, II, and III levels, the 2025-26 College Coach Mentorship Program class shapes up as the following:
Paul Caceres, BinghamtonMentor: Jordan Smith
Sophia Geier, LehighMentor: Bob Dallis
Kelly Larkin, DavidsonMentor: Tyler Thomson
Anita Onufer, CalU (PA)Mentor: Mike Morgan
Derrick Taylor, Georgia StateMentor: Harry Jadun
Nicholas Castro, Air ForceMentor: Michael Woodson
Selenay Heper, Purdue – NorthwestMentor: Trish Riddell
Brady Matthews, Southwest BaptistMentor: Steve Barsby
Nyssa Peele, Cal TechMentor: Nadia Abdala
Elena Tendero Ortiz, Louisiana LafayetteMentor: Gina Suarez
John DeVito, WittenbergMentor: Pauri Pandian
Joey Kronzer, St. OlafMentor: Paul Settles
Valeria Nikolaev, DartmouthMentor: Erin Ness
Sonam Phuntsok, Wichita StateMentor: Rahim Esmail
Vidit Vaghela, James MadisonMentor: Ryan Keckley
After beginning with a class of 12 mentees in the inaugural year (2020), the program has since expanded to include at least 15 mentees every year, with this year’s class marking over 85 coaches who have benefited from this program.
Kicking off with a virtual orientation, each mentee will be expected to complete several virtual educational opportunities throughout the year from other mentors in the program through coaches panels, on various topics.
As part of the 2025-26 Mentorship Program, all 15 of the selected mentees will be able to attend the 2025 ITA Coaches Convention in Tempe, Arizona for free. A $500 travel stipend will be provided as well to all mentees to attend the Coaches Convention.
About the ITA: The Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) is the governing body and coaches association of college tennis, both an advocate and an authority for the sport and its members. Comprised of 1,260 colleges and universities, 20,000 student-athletes, 1,700 varsity programs, 3,000 coaches, and 1,350 college tennis officials, the ITA empowers college tennis coaches at all levels to deliver vibrant tennis programs that are vital to their college communities and transformational to their student-athletes. Follow the college tennis season on the ITA website and ITA social channels on Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, Facebook, and YouTube.
