Ki Kroll tabbed women’s tennis coachKi Kroll tabbed women’s tennis coach
Women's Tennis

Ki Kroll tabbed women’s tennis coach

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SAN ANTONIO -- Former Northern Arizona and Southern Miss head coach Ki Kroll has been named the new UTSA women's tennis coach, it was announced by Vice President for Athletics Dr. Lisa Campos.
 
"We are thrilled to name Ki Kroll as our new head women's tennis coach," Campos said. "I had the pleasure of working with Ki at Northern Arizona and know that he will fit in great with our culture. Ki's tennis knowledge, work ethic and ability to connect with student-athletes will be a tremendous asset to UTSA."
 
Kroll comes to the Roadrunners after serving as the men's tennis coach at Northern Arizona for five seasons, after a three-year stint as the head coach at Southern Miss. He was both the men's and women's head coach at Northern Arizona last year.
 
"I'm very excited to be joining the UTSA family; the staff, coaches and faculty have shown me true Texas hospitality," Kroll said. "I would especially like to thank Dr. Lisa Campos who has placed her confidence in me. This is a wonderful opportunity, we have a great group of ladies, and I'm extremely eager to get started. I look forward to hitting the ground running and will put all my effort into moving this program in a championship direction. Go Roadrunners!"
 
While with Northern Arizona, Kroll – who served as both the men's and women's head coach last year – amassed 70 wins, including three conference titles, 21 all-conference honorees, a two-time league MVP, freshman of the year, ITA Mountain Region Rookie of the Year and an ITA Mountain Regional doubles champion.
 
In the classroom, Kroll's teams earned 11 all-conference academic honors and 27 Golden Eagle Scholar-Athletes, and boasted an ITA All-Academic Team honoree.
 
In the spring of 2017, Kroll's squad finished with a 15-8 overall including a 10-1 run in the Big Sky, one of the best seasons in program history. His top recruit was named Big Sky MVP in addition to picking up All-Big Sky First Team recognition in both singles and doubles.
 
Not only did Kroll lead the men's tennis program to success in 2017, but also the women's tennis program. In his first season with the women, Kroll and the Lumberjacks finished 18-5 overall, notched an undefeated 11-0 record in the Big Sky and garnered a back-to-back regular season championship title. Kroll's top recruit went on to be named ITA Mountain Rookie of the Year, Big Sky Co-Freshman of the Year and notched All-Big Sky First Team honors in both singles and doubles.
 
In his first year, Lumberjack tennis reached the Big Sky Championship after pulling off two upsets, beating No. 1 Weber State and No. 3 Montana. Not to mention the victory over the No. 67 ranked program in the country, Nevada-Reno, which was NAU tennis' first win over a ranked opponent since 2002 and only the second time in program history.
 
In 2014, Kroll and his squad were a force to be reckoned with in the Big Sky. They finished third in the conference despite an eighth place preseason poll predictions. The Lumberjacks rattled off streaks of four and six straight wins with some memorable victories over Montana State, Grand Canyon and the 2013 Big Sky Champions Sacramento State.
 
Kroll served as the head coach at the University of Southern Mississippi from 2011-13, where he produced an impressive three-year stint that saw the program recover from NCAA violations to reach a national ranking, a 15-win season and a top-notch recruiting class.
 
Prior to Southern Miss, Kroll served in dual roles as the men's tennis coach and the Assistant Athletic Director/Business Manager at Vassar College, where he led the Brewers to three consecutive NCAA Division III Tournaments from 2005-10. He was a three-time Liberty League Coach of the Year during his five seasons. Over the span of his coaching career at Vassar, Kroll coached four All-Americans, the 2010 and 2011 ITA Northeast Singles champion, the 2008 ITA Northeast Doubles champions, 18 All-Academic selections and one Capital One Academic All-American.
 
Kroll has also received national acclaim for his involvement as the Director of Tennis at the Andre Agassi Boys & Girls Club in Las Vegas, Nev. Most notably, he is credited with developing a strong inner-city tennis program for Andre Agassi into one of the most successful programs of its type in the country. A number of his former students have been ranked in the top-five nationally in the junior tennis, earning opportunities to represent the United States in international play. Several players went on to play Division I tennis as well as professionally.
 
Kroll played collegiately at Penn State, received his bachelor's degree in History from Eastern New Mexico University and his Masters of Education in Educational Leadership from Northern Arizona.
 
- GO UTSA -