Jill Hultquist
In four seasons, Jill Hultquist rebuilt the Husky women's tennis team and guided Washington back to the NCAA Round of 16. Now as she enters her seventh year, the focus is on moving to the next level, returning to the top-10 and competing for national championships. The Huskies have now made four consecutive NCAA tournament appearances, and Hultquist has coached Denise Dy and Venise Chan to top-10 singles and doubles rankings, and All-America honors over the past two years. Head Coaching Career Last season the Huskies attained their highest ranking under Hultquist, as they reached No. 15 on the way to a fourth straight NCAA tournament appearance, where they made the second round for the second year in a row. The Huskies returned to the ITA National Team Indoor Championships final site for the first time since 2005 by virtue of upsetting Texas and Florida State on back-to-back days in Tallahassee. Denise Dy and Venise Chan starred for the Dawgs again in 2011, as both earned ITA All-America honors in singles as well as doubles, two of just eleven players nationally to achieve that feat. The pair made the NCAA Doubles quarterfinals, and Chan made the round of 16 in singles while Dy was the No. 4 seed at nationals, reaching the second round. Chan ended her career with 101 singles wins, second-most in school history, and was named Pac-10 Scholar Athlete of the Year and an Academic All-American. Washington followed its 2009 Sweet 16 run with another stellar season in 2010, highlighted by historic seasons from Venise Chan and Denise Dy. The two each earned All-America honors for the first time in their careers, becoming the first two Husky All-Americans since 2004. Dy was ranked as high as No. 3 in the nation and finished the year ranked 13th, while Chan was right behind at 15th in the final singles rankings. Dy made the semifinals of the ITA National Indoor Championships while Chan made the semis of the ITA All-American Championships. Both were seeded in the NCAA Singles Championships, making UW and Florida the only two teams with two seeded players. The Huskies swept Utah in the NCAA first round in 2010 before falling to eventual runner-up Florida in Gainesville in the second round, in what was a homecoming for Hultquist, who was a multiple All-American at Florida. Washington finished the year ranked 23rd nationally, its first time finishing in the Top-25 since 2005. The Huskies also had four players earn Pac-10 All-Academic honors. In just four years, Hultquist took a 3-17 team and restored stability, added depth and an influx of talent, and brought the Huskies back to national prominence. The turnaround was made official when the Huskies reached the NCAA Round of 16 in 2009 with a stunning upset of Pac-10 Champion USC. The 4-3 win was the first ever for Washington on USC's home courts, and sent the Huskies on to the Round of 16 for the fourth time but first since 2004. Hultquist was named the Northwest Region Head Coach of the Year for her efforts in 2009, as the Huskies went 18-8 and finished the season ranked 27th. Sophomore Venise Chan earned her first All-Pac-10 First Team honor and became the third Husky ever to end the year ranked in the Top-25, finishing 25th. Joyce Ardies and Denise Dy also gelled into one of the West's top doubles teams, as they shot up to No. 30 at year's end despite playing only half the dual season together. One year prior, Hultquist guided the Huskies back to the NCAA Championships for the first time since 2005, and the Huskies climbed back into the ITA Top-40 after nearly a two-year absence. Hultquist added star freshman recruit Venise Chan, who went straight to the top of the singles lineup and reached the NCAA Singles Championship, helping to change the tenor of the program. A former standout on the pro tour and in the collegiate ranks, Hultquist returned to Washington in 2006 after serving as an assistant coach with the Huskies from 1997-2002, and was immediately faced with a team on the ropes. Her initial team was ravaged by injuries and roster subtractions, leaving Hultquist to scramble some afternoons just to fill a lineup, and in several matches UW could only start five singles players, forfeiting the No. 6 point. The following year was another struggle with injuries and depth, but, things finally came together near the end of the season for the Huskies, as they posted consecutive wins over Pac-10 rivals Oregon and Washington State to end the season. The wins were the first for Hultquist in conference play, and set the stage for Washington's return to prominence in 2008. The 2008 Huskies won nine of their first ten matches and would go on to defeat seven ranked opponents including 12th-ranked Arizona State and 28th-ranked BYU. The Huskies swept both Arizona schools, and the thrilling 4-3 win over the Sun Devils was UW's first over a Top-25 team since 2005. After starting the season ranked 70th by the ITA, Washington had cut that number in half and entered the postseason at No. 35. Assistant Coaching Tenure Hultquist is the fourth head coach in program history, and succeeded Patty McCain, whom Hultquist worked with as an assistant for five seasons. During her first tour of duty at UW, Hultquist helped lead the Huskies to five consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances including a school record trip to the NCAA Quarterfinals in 2001. In fact, it was Hultquist who served as the acting head coach for the team during its Elite Eight run, as McCain was unable to travel to Stone Mountain, Ga., due to the impending birth of her first child. That run included a Sweet-16 victory over fifth-ranked Tennessee. Hultquist was named the National Assistant Coach of the Year by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association in 2001. She was also selected as the ITA Northwest Region Assistant Coach of the Year in both 2000 and 2001. Among the players Hultquist mentored in her previous tenure at Washington All-Americans Claire Carter, Kristina Kraszewski, Dea Sumantri and Darija Klaic. Carter, Washington's only four-time All-American, was a member of Hultquist's staff serving as her assistant coach in 2006. Playing Career Before joining the coaching ranks at Washington, Hultquist played professionally on the WTA Tour from 1987-1997, winning more than 20 doubles titles. She ranked as high as sixth in the world in doubles and 64th in the world in singles. Hultquist teamed with McCain on the doubles circuit, and among their victories was a win over Steffi Graf and Gabriela Sabatini in the semifinals of the 1988 U.S. Open. They also advanced to the finals of the 1989 Australian Open. Hultquist reached the mixed doubles finals of the French Open in 1995 and competed in the Olympic Games for Canada in 1984, 1988 and 1996. She and Patricia Hy-Boulais advanced to the quarterfinals in Atlanta before falling to eventual bronze medalists Jana Novotna and Helena Sulcova of the Czech Republic. Hultquist garnered a number of achievements during her years on the WTA, including the WTA Tour Sportsmanship Award, the Tennis Canada Sportsmanship Award and the 1988 Player of the Year Award in Canada. She is a member of the Tennis Canada Hall of Fame. Also a standout collegian, Hultquist earned four All-America certificates at the University of Florida, while studying psychology from 1983-1987. She was inducted into the University of Florida Hall of Fame in the spring of 1999. She ended up earning her Bachelor of Arts degree in psychology from Washington in 2000. A native of Toronto, Canada, Hultquist and her husband Rich have two children, Jack (9) and Maggie (7). The family resides in Renton, Wash.
