Release courtesy of Gettysburg Athletic Communications
GETTYSBURG, Pa. – Michael Vann has been named Gettysburg College's next head men's and women's tennis coach, announced by Executive Director of Intercollegiate Athletics and Campus Recreation Mike Mattia on Thursday.
With Vann's appointment, the position has been elevated to full time and will be solely responsible for operation of the men's and women's tennis program.
No stranger to the Centennial Conference (CC), Vann spent nine years as an assistant coach at Johns Hopkins.
"Michael separated himself from a very competitive pool of candidates," Mattia said. "He has a proven track record of success not only in the Centennial Conference, but also nationally at the NCAA Division III level. He cares deeply about the overall student-athlete experience, and I am very excited for him to get started this spring and continue the growth of both the men's and women's tennis teams."
During his tenure at Johns Hopkins, he helped the men's tennis program to a 69-1 record in conference matches, eight conference titles and NCAA tournament appearances each season. The NCAA tournament runs included four runs to the quarterfinals that included a national semifinal appearance in 2021. Following that 2021 season, he was named the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) Assistant Coach of the Year for the Atlantic South Region. In total, he coached more than 25 All-American and all-conference selections and four CC Players of the Year.
He has served as the Director of Racquet Sports at Hillendale Country Club in Phoenix, Md., since 2021. Prior to that he served in various roles in tennis clubs around Maryland, holding positions at The Elkridge Club (Baltimore), Junior Tennis Champions Center (College Park), Green Spring Racquet Club (Lutherville), and The Suburban Club (Pikesville).
"First of all, I would like to thank Mike Mattia and the entire search committee for giving me the opportunity to be the next head men's and women's tennis coach at Gettysburg College," Vann said. "The commitment shown by Gettysburg and athletic department to make the tennis position full-time for both teams speaks volume for our current student-athletes, future student-athletes, and alumni moving forward. I look forward to continuing to build on the foundation established by my predecessor Ali Flores as well as elevate both men and women tennis programs at the conference, regional, and national level."
During his time at Junior Tennis Champions Center – one of the largest USTA Regional Training Centers in the country – he served as a senior coach and college advisor. He helped train and develop nationally- and regionally-ranked Junior tournament players. He helped these players find NCAA Division I, Division II, Division III and junior college institutions to continue their tennis careers.
Prior to his tenure with the Blue Jays, he served as the head coach at Goucher for seven seasons. During his stint from 2005-12, he posted 26 wins with the men's program that included a Capital Athletic Conference semifinal appearance in 2007. He has also served on numerous committees for the ITA and NCAA. In 2011, he earned the USTA/ITA Community Outreach Award for the Mid-Atlantic section. He also produced 10 ITA Scholar-Athletes during his tenure with the Gophers.
Prior to joining Goucher's staff, Vann was an assistant coach on the nationally ranked Division III men's and women's teams at Kenyon. He has also coached at Bucknell, Birmingham-Southern and the University of Alabama, his alma mater.
He is a certified United States Tennis Association High Performance Coach, which is the highest level of certification for tennis that can be obtained through the association. He is also a United States Professional Tennis Association Elite Professional and Professional Tennis Registry Performance Professional – two of the highest level of certifications through the organizations.
Vann graduated from the University of Alabama with a bachelor of science in education, majoring in human performance.
Vann officially assumes his duties on January 16.