Daryl Greenan
Since Coach Daryl Greenan took over the reigns of the MSU women's tennis program in the fall of 2009, he has pushed the Lady Bulldog tennis squad to improve and constantly strive for greatness.
In the 2012 spring season, Greenan led the Lady Bulldogs to a 7-14 overall season and a 6-3 non-conference slate. MSU posted an impressive 4-3 SEC victory against No. 29 ranked Arkansas, a feat that had not been accomplished since 2006.
In his fourth year at MSU, Greenan has successfully recruited a cluster of young talent. The three incoming athletes are all true freshman, looking to make a splash in SEC athletics. Sarai Flores comes by way of Mexico City, Mexico, Lien Van Geel is a native of Tessenderlo, Belgium, and Gerogiana Patrasc comes all the way from Bacau, Romania.
Three current Lady Bulldogs have earned 2012 SEC Academic Honor Roll honors under Greenan including juniors Roseline Dion and Alexandra Perper, as well as sophomore Petra Ferancova. Greenan successfully graduated lone senior Olesya Tsigvintseva in the spring of 2012. Tsigvintseva earned a respectable 35 singles wins during her four-year term with the Lady Bulldogs.
The 2006 Big Ten Coach of the Year, Greenan completed his fifth season as head coach of the Iowa women's tennis squad in 2008-09. In his five seasons at Iowa, Greenan and the Hawkeyes compiled a 64-51 overall record and a 28-23 mark in Big Ten play. Iowa posted winning seasons in four of his five seasons, also finishing in the top four of the conference three times, qualifying for the NCAA Championship twice and crowning 17 Academic all-Big Ten honorees.
During the 2009 season, Iowa was ranked in the top 50 nationally at one point in the season. Greenan coached his top player to all-Big Ten status and that same player was also named Big Ten Freshman of the Year and ITA Midwest Regional Rookie of the Year. The Hawkeyes placed four players on the ITA Scholar-Athlete team and the entire team was named ITA All-Academic.
In 2006-07, the team finished fourth in the Big Ten and advanced to the semifinals of the Big Ten Tournament for the third straight season. Despite a slower start to the season, the team picked up the pace in the spring and ended the year ranked sixth in the region and 51st in the nation. One of Greenan's players was an all-Big Ten selection.
The 2005-06 Iowa edition was a major success, as the squad went 9-1 in the Big Ten and posted a school-record second place finish in the conference. The team's overall record of 18-6 gave the Hawkeyes their best winning percentage (.750) in school history and Iowa qualified for the NCAA Championship for the third consecutive year - the sixth time overall. Those excellent results led to a No. 33 final national ranking. Several individuals recorded career-best seasons. Three Hawkeyes finished 9-1 in Big Ten play, the first time ever that three Hawkeyes earned Big Ten leading records for their respective positions in a single season. For his team's success that season, Greenan was named Big Ten Coach of the Year. Two of his players ended the year ranked in the top 100 nationally, including Meg Racette who was awarded all-Big Ten honors and finished the year ranked 35th. She became only the second Hawkeye ever to qualify for the NCAA Singles Championship and the first to win a match in the draw.
Prior to becoming a Hawkeye, Greenan was assistant women's tennis coach at the University of Alabama for three years (2002-04). Working under head coach Jenny Mainz, Greenan was involved in all aspects of the Tide's women's tennis coaching responsibilities. While at Alabama, Greenan was named the 2004 ITA South Region Assistant Coach of the Year. He helped guide the Crimson Tide to two top 30 national rankings, one top 40 finish and three consecutive trips to the NCAA Championship.
Greenan also has ties to the north Mississippi area, having served as the head coach at Mississippi University for Women from 1998-2001. At MUW, he compiled a 41-25 record with the Blues. He was also an assistant men's and women's coach at Valdosta [GA] State for two years (1997-98) prior to that stint.
As a player, Greenan was a member of the men's tennis team at Valdosta State. He was the No. 1 singles player for two seasons, and was part of the No. 1 doubles team for three campaigns. Greenan was ranked in the top 20 in singles and achieved his highest doubles ranking in 1995, when he finished second in the nation. He was honored as part of the 1995 all-America team and earned all-Gulf South Conference honors three seasons. Greenan was inducted into the Valdosta State Athletic Hall of Fame in 2004.
Born in Ontario, Canada, Greenan and his wife, Shannon (a native of West Point, Miss.), have a five-year-old daughter, Willa. He earned his B.S. degree in health and fitness from Valdosta State in 1997.
