Cornell’s women’s tennis team has added someone familiar to Ivy League competition, hiring former Princeton assistant coach Laura Glitz as the new Carl H. Meinig ’31 Head Coach of Women’s Tennis.
An All-America player at Arizona State, Glitz already well familiar with the Ancient Eight, having spent the past four years under the tutelage of respected Tigers’ head coach Louise Gengeler. At Princeton, Glitz was involved with all aspects of the program, from recruiting to training, as the team consistently finished in the top half of the Ivy standings.
Prior to her coaching career, Glitz racked up plenty of accomplishments as a professional player, including appearances in all four grand slam events while on the WTA Tour from 1990 through 1994. In those years, she broke into the top 250 in the world as a singles player, and was also ranked among the top 90 doubles players in the world.
Her other achievements as a player include winning the USPTA/MSTA Outstanding Women’s Open Player of the Year four times. She was also the top seed in the United States Professional Tennis Association women’s open singles in 1994.
Following her stint on the professional tour, Glitz got her first coaching experience working closely with junior players at the Yorktowne, Pa., Racquet and Fitness Club. There, she served as an instructor and tennis director from 1994-2000 before moving on to the collegiate coaching ranks.
In becoming the eighth coach in the Cornell program’s history, Glitz inherits a much improved Red team from former interim head coach Tom Brownlie ’98. After a disappointing 2-14 2002-03 campaign, the Cornell squad finished with a 7-9 mark last season.
Much of that success is owed to the All-Ivy caliber play from Akane Kokubo and Erika Takeuchi who will both be returning as seniors for Glitz next season.
Kokubo compiled an 18-12 (3-4 Ivy) while splitting time between the No. 1 and No. 2 singles positions for the Red. Her overall performance throughout the season earned her second-team All-Ivy singles honors.
Meanwhile, Takeuchi and Kokubo teamed up to earn second team All-Ivy honors while recording a 9-11 (3-4 Ivy) mark as Cornell’s top doubles squad.
The new head coach will also be able to look forward to an impressive incoming class that features three nationally ranked players. Freshman Dana Cruite from Punta Gorda, Fla., Ashley Ebbert from Paradise Valley, Ariz., and Weatherly Schwab from Ithaca will be counted upon to add depth to the Red’s lineup. With this recruiting class joining a team that will be almost completely intact from last year, Glitz will be in position to have an promising start to her head coaching career.
Archived article by Scott Reich
Sun Staff Writer