Impact
Records
Bill Kingston
Moorestown High School
Impact Statement
“Every group presents the same challenge: how can the young men become the best individual players and form the best team possible.” -Bill Kingston
Biography
Now in his 39th season coaching the school’s boys and girls teams, Kingston, 69, became the nation’s all-time leading winner last spring.
A 5-0 Moorestown victory over Columbus Burlington Township High last May was No. 955 in his career. It was one of the highlights of a season which saw the Quakers post a 23-9 record, win the Burlington County Scholastic League Liberty Division title, the Burlington County Open team championship and the South Jersey Group 3 championship.
The Quakers were runners-up in the Group 3 state tournament and two top in-season team tournaments, the Moorestown Classic and the Westfield Invitational. With a career record of 965-173 entering this season, Kingston guided the Moorestown boys to the South Jersey Group 2 championship in 2001 and the Central Jersey and state Group 3 championship in 2007.
His girls team won the South Jersey Group 3 championship in 2007 and has won 23 consecutive section titles. Kingston is one of the deans of tennis coaches in a tennis-rich area which also includes Jeff Holman of Haddonfield Memorial High, the NHSCA National Girls Tennis Coach of the Year in 2009, and Ralph Ipri, who retired from Cherry Hill East High after setting the record Kingston broke, 954 victories. Between them, the three own nearly 3,000 wins.
Since being honored, Kingston continued to lead the Moorestown to success. He stopped coaching the girls’ team in 2012. In April of 2013, Kingston hit the momentous step of win number 1,000 with a 3-2 win over Watchung Hills.
Kingston stepped down after 47 years at the helm in 2020. Unfortunately, this season did not happen due to COVID-19. Over the course of his career, he coached 13 state and 41 sectional championship teams. He hangs his racket up with a career record of 1,145-226. Kingston leaves a legacy behind at Moorestown.
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Records
Gulliver Preparatory School
Mulligan has led Gulliver Prep to many state titles during the course of her career in both the boys’ and girls’ tennis programs.
Mulligan has led Gulliver Prep to many state titles during the course of her career in both the boys’ and girls’ tennis programs.
Kelly Mulligan
Gulliver Preparatory School
Impact Statement
Mulligan has led Gulliver Prep to many state titles during the course of her career in both the boys’ and girls’ tennis programs.
Biography
Mulligan has coached the boys and girls teams at Gulliver Prep for 22 seasons, and now owns a total of 11 2A state team titles. Seven of those have been won by her boys teams, which have finished in the state’s top two in nine of the past 10 seasons.
This spring, her boys team, which included just one senior and five freshmen, rolled to its fifth consecutive state team title by scoring a clean sweep, capturing all five singles titles and both doubles titles for a perfect 21 state tournament points. The only other boys team in any class to achieve a perfect score of 21 in the last decade: Gulliver Prep’s 2009 state championship team. Her boys teams also won titles in 2003 and 2005, finishing second in 2002 and 2004. Mulligan also has coached two boys to individual singles titles and three doubles teams to state crowns.
One of them, current Northwestern University standout Raleigh Smith, was named the NHSCA National High School Athlete of the Year in 2010. Gulliver Prep’s five consecutive titles are the state’s longest current streak and the third longest in state history, and their seven titles are fifth best in state history.
The Miami Herald named Mulligan the All-Dade Boys Coach of the Year in 2008, and she was named the Florida Dairy Farmers Florida Coach of the Year in 2009, after previously being awarded the state’s 2A honor.
Since being honored, Mulligan is still coaching the Girls’ team at Gulliver Prep. In addition, she’s also the girls’ golf coach. In 2014, Mulligan was inducted into the Gulliver Athletic Hall of Fame for her dedication and success to her teams. Her girls placed second in 2012 and won another State Championships in 2013, 2014, and 2019. Her boys’ team also placed second in 2012 and won the following year.
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Records
Professional Achievements
William Hall High School
Connecicut’s winningest tennis coach, James Solomon has led William Hall High School to four state championships over his 45 year career.
Connecicut’s winningest tennis coach, James Solomon has led William Hall High School to four state championships over his 45 year career.
James Solomon
William Hall High School
Impact Statement
Connecicut’s winningest tennis coach, James Solomon has led William Hall High School to four state championships over his 45 year career.
Biography
The second Boys Tennis Coach of the Year from the Nutmeg State in as many years, Solomon has guided the Warriors to a record of 445-61 and four state team titles as he completes his 36th season.
In 1979 Solomon led Hall to the title in the state’s largest division, Class LL, and followed that with the all-class State Open championship. The Warriors have since gone on to win Class L state titles in 1992, 1993 and 2007, and also own 13 state runner-up finishes, including the past two seasons. Under Solomon the Warriors have won 18 Central Connecticut Conference Western Division titles, including the last five in a row. Solomon coached the individual state singles champions in 2006 and 2007, and his players also swept the New England Championships singles and doubles titles in 2006 and added the singles title in 2007.
The state’s Coach of the Year in 1985, Solomon was inducted into the Connecticut High School Coaches Association Hall of Fame in 2003. A two-time National High School Athletic Coaches Association (NHSACA) Regional Coach of the Year, Solomon was named National Coach of the Year by the NHSACA in 2000.
Since being honored, Solomon continues to lead William Hall. He has coached his teams to four state tiles over the past 45 years. In addition, he’s coached six individual Singles State Champs and two Doubles State Champs.
On April 24, 2019, Hall’s 7-0 win over Simsbury gave him the boost to become Connecticut’s most winningest coach. He boasts a career record of 575-94 record after the season.
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Records
Professional Achievements
Greenwich High School
“I absolutely love coaching,” -Connie Jones
“I absolutely love coaching,” -Connie Jones
Connie Jones
Greenwich High School
Impact Statement
“I absolutely love coaching,” -Connie Jones
Biography
In 1997, Jones’ first year at Greenwich, the Cardinals were undefeated and won the state and Fairfield County Interscholastic Athletic Conference (FCIAC) championships. Thus began a dynasty. Jones has taken a program that included approximately 35 players in her first season to 76 this season on four levels.
Greenwich now has won nine FCIAC titles, including seven in a row, and six Class LL state crowns, including the last five straight. The Cardinals (16-1, 13-0 this season) are 142-9 since 2002 and 235-34 overall under Jones. She was named Boys’ Tennis Coach of the Year by the Connecticut High School Coaches Association last season.
A letterwinner in field hockey, basketball, tennis and lacrosse as a high school athlete, Jones has won nine United States Tennis Association doubles titles and has captured 11 American Platform Tennis Association national titles. She is a tennis pro at Sound Shore Indoor Tennis Club in Port Chester, N.Y. and a platform tennis pro at Roxbury Swim and Tennis Club in Stamford.
Over the course of her career her teams won 10 Fairfield County Interscholastic Athletic Conference championships. Her teams also won seven Class LL titles.
In 2018 Jones won her 16th APTA,( American Platform Tennis Association), national title. This is her fourth straight title.
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Articles
Records
Professional Achievements
Personal Honors
Boys Latin School
Jackson’s boys’ tennis team remained undefeated for four consecutive seasons, winning 78 of 80 matches at one stretch.
Jackson’s boys’ tennis team remained undefeated for four consecutive seasons, winning 78 of 80 matches at one stretch.
Preston Jackson Jr.
Boys Latin School
Impact Statement
Jackson’s boys’ tennis team remained undefeated for four consecutive seasons, winning 78 of 80 matches at one stretch.
Biography
Jackson just completed his first year as head coach at Boys Latin. Prior to that, he coached the boys and girls teams at Baltimore Polytechnic Institute for 12 seasons, where he taught aero science and physics of flight. He led his teams to nine District 9 team championships, including seven in a row. They were undefeated for four consecutive seasons, winning 78 of 80 matches at one stretch.
A member of the U.S. High School Tennis Coaches Association Board of Directors, Jackson was named the Mid-Atlantic High School Coach of the Year by the United States Professional Tennis Association in 2000, 2001, 2002 and 2006, and its National High School Coach of the Year in 2001. A tennis professional for 28 years and a former Air Force coach and player, Jackson serves as Tennis Director at the Potomac Woods Swim Club in Rockville, Maryland.
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Pioneer High School
‘This was never work to me. It was all fun, all passion. It was never, never work.” -Tom Pullen
‘This was never work to me. It was all fun, all passion. It was never, never work.” -Tom Pullen
Tom Pullen
Pioneer High School
Impact Statement
‘This was never work to me. It was all fun, all passion. It was never, never work.” -Tom Pullen
Biography
It’s been more than seven years – April 17, 2000, to be exact – since a Pullen-coached boys team at Pioneer lost a dual meet. They also posted tournament winning streaks of 52 and 50 straight through last season, and are favored to win a seventh consecutive Division 1 team title this spring. In the 2005 and 2006 seasons, Pullen’s boys teams posted a 526-16 match record and combined for 44 state singles or doubles crowns.
Now in his 17th season, Pullen’s boys teams have won a total of eight state titles; his girls teams have won four state crowns and posted a seventh runnerup finish last fall. A retired dentist who was a member of the wrestling team at the University of Michigan, Pullen didn’t take up tennis until the age of 35, but since then has won 10 city doubles championships. He was voted the Michigan High School Tennis Coaches Association’s Division 1 Coach of the Year in 2006.
Since being honored in 2007, Pullen continues to lead Pioneer to success. In 2010, both his Girls’ and Boys’ teams finished second in the state. In 2012, Pioneer named the courts in his honor.
Although he’s retired from his dental practice, Pullen is still actively leading Pioneer’s tennis teams. Most recently, his boys’ team made it to the state finals in 2019.
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Records
Professional Achievements
Corona del Mar High School
Coached teams to four CIF titles and 19 league championships over his 36 year career.
Coached teams to four CIF titles and 19 league championships over his 36 year career.
Tim Mang
Corona del Mar High School
Impact Statement
Coached teams to four CIF titles and 19 league championships over his 36 year career.
Biography
Mang is completing his 35th season as one of California’s most distinguished high school tennis coaches. The coach of Corona del Mar’s boys’ team since 1993, Mang’s teams have a dual-meet record of 282-38, nine league titles, and 12 consecutive appearances in the California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) state team tournament, winning titles in 1999, 2001 and 2003.
His 1998 team, which shared the state title, was ranked No. 4 nationally and his 1999 team No. 2. Seven of his players became High School All-Americans. He also coached Corona del Mar’s girls’ team from 1995-98, with his 1997 team winning the CIF state title and finishing the season ranked No. 1 nationally.
Mang began his coaching career at Huntington Beach Edison High, going 290-90 and winning nine league titles in 17 seasons. In 1982, the National High School Athletic Coaches Association named him its Western States Coach of the Year and its National Coach of the Year First Runner-up, as well as California Coach of the Year.
In 2018 Mang was inducted into the National High School Tennis Coaches Association Hall of Fame.
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Community Service
In addition to coaching, Mang created the National High School Tennis All-American Foundation (NHSTAAF). It's a non-profit corporation that he created to promote high school boys and girls tennis. In addition. the NHSTAAF also recognizes the most outstanding high school players and teams throughout the country.
Records
Professional Achievements
Bishop O'Gorman High School
“I learned my game by watching others and just love all the aspects of the game–the athleticism and competitiveness it requires to win.” -Don Barnes
“I learned my game by watching others and just love all the aspects of the game–the athleticism and competitiveness it requires to win.” -Don Barnes
Don Barnes
Bishop O'Gorman High School
Impact Statement
“I learned my game by watching others and just love all the aspects of the game–the athleticism and competitiveness it requires to win.” -Don Barnes
Biography
In two separate coaching stints – from 1972-79 and 1995 to the present – Barnes’s boys’ teams at O’Gorman High have finished in the state’s Class A top 10 every one of his 18 seasons. Fourteen of those were top five finishes and his 2003 team won the state title. He also coached the girls’ tennis team from 1976-79, winning the state title each of those four seasons.
Barnes was inducted into the South Dakota Tennis Hall of Fame in 2001 and was voted the Coach of the Year in 2003. His wife, Kate, has coached O’Gorman’s girls teams for five seasons, leading them to two runner-up state finishes, two third-place finishes and a fourth-place finish.
Since being honored, Barnes continues to coach at Bishop O’Gorman, one of the elite schools in South Dakota.
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Professional Achievements
Naples High School
“Giving the student athletes the tools necessary to make them successful both on and off the court. Tennis is like most things in life, you get out of it what you put into it.”
“Giving the student athletes the tools necessary to make them successful both on and off the court. Tennis is like most things in life, you get out of it what you put into it.”
Tony Kamen
Naples High School
Impact Statement
“Giving the student athletes the tools necessary to make them successful both on and off the court. Tennis is like most things in life, you get out of it what you put into it.”
Biography
Tony Kamen of Naples High School nailed down the Boys’ coaching honor as the 2004 Coach of the Year for Boy’s Tennis. Naples High won its third straight Florida 3A championship.
Since being honored, Kamen is still coaching his Naples Golden Eagles.
In 2018, Kame was the third inductee into the Florida High School Tennis Coaches Association’s Hall of Fame.
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Records
Professional Achievements
St. Mark's School of Texas
“Through him the boys see an example of pure dedication and passion.”
-Arnold Holtberg, St. Mark’s Headmaster
“Through him the boys see an example of pure dedication and passion.”
-Arnold Holtberg, St. Mark’s Headmaster
Jerry Lacey
St. Mark's School of Texas
Impact Statement
“Through him the boys see an example of pure dedication and passion.”
-Arnold Holtberg, St. Mark’s Headmaster
Biography
Lacey’s St. Mark’s team put together a dominating season en route to a 15-0 record and the Southwestern Preparatory Conference title. In their 15 matches, the Lions didn’t lose a match, going a combined 109-0 in singles and doubles play.
Of those 109 victories, 105 were in straight sets. Sports Illustrated magazine also recognized Lacey’s distinguished career with a mention in its “Faces in the Crowd” section this year. A graduate of Iona College and Fordham University, Lacey teaches humanities at the school.
Lacey continued to teach at St. Mark’s until he retired after the 2012 school year. He continued to coach until he retired.
Lacey was honored in 2012 by receiving the The Ralph B. Rogers Alumni Award. This annual award is given to a teacher or staff member at St. Mark’s School of Texas who have made an “important and pioneering contribution to the mission of the School and the School community,” according to their website.
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Articles
Records
Phoenixville High school
A self taught tennis coach who became mayor of Phoenixville.
A self taught tennis coach who became mayor of Phoenixville.
Leo Scoda
Phoenixville High school
Impact Statement
A self taught tennis coach who became mayor of Phoenixville.
Biography
Scoda never played tennis prior to his days as a student at Penn State University, but became the coach of Phoenixville High’s first tennis team in 1963 and has held the position ever since. Scoda retired after 51 years in 2014. The self-taught player turned the Phantoms into one of southeastern Pennsylvania’s most successful programs.
His dual meet record entering this season (2001) was 460-70, including a streak of 127 consecutive Pioneer Athletic Conference (PAC) victories. His team won 11 titles as a member of the Ches-Mont League and has won all 15 PAC titles since the conference was created. Scoda was inducted into the USTA Middle States Tennis Patrons Hall of Fame in 1998.
Scoda also coaches the girls’ tennis team from 1977 until 1982 and had a record of 61-17. Scoda finished his career with a record of 699-126.
In addition to his coaching and leadership of the summer tennis program, Scoda was also mayor of Phoenixville for four terms.
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Articles
Records
Professional Achievements
Walker High School
Pilling lead Walker High School to four consecutive State Championships and is continuing his success at Summit Christian High School.
Pilling lead Walker High School to four consecutive State Championships and is continuing his success at Summit Christian High School.
Gary Pilling
Walker High School
Impact Statement
Pilling lead Walker High School to four consecutive State Championships and is continuing his success at Summit Christian High School.
Biography
“Gary Pilling is an outstanding example for successful high school tennis coaches,” NHSCA executive director Bob Ferraro said. “They place a high value on the teamwork skills players learn for success in the classroom and on the field, and we are proud to be honoring him.”
A 1980 graduate of the University of Alabama-Birmingham, Pilling was a serious tennis player from the seventh grade on. He began coaching in Jasper at the recreational league level in 1983 and became head tennis coach at Walker High in 1990.
In Pilling’s first eight seasons, Walker High was one of the state’s top Class 6A teams despite being one of the division’s smallest schools. His highest finish was eighth in 1998.
Since moving down to Class 5A in 1999, the school has won the last two state titles easily, more than doubling the score of the second-place team this year. Walker High also defeated all of its Class 6A competition this season except for state champion Mountain Brook. Walker tennis players swept to individual titles in No. 2 through No. 6 singles and No. 2 and No. 3 doubles this year, while finishing second at No. 1 singles and No. 1 doubles.
Pilling retired from coaching in the public spectrum and took a position at Summit Christian High School, where is still employed and still on the court coaching. In 2019 the Summit Christian tennis team made it back to the State Championships.
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