May 18, 2009
LEXINGTON, Ky. –
Kentucky men’s tennis associate head coach Cedric Kauffmann was recently named the Southeast Region assistant coach of the year by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) the national tennis organization’s home office announced.
It is the first honor from the ITA for the fourth-year coach and former UK player. The award is voted on by Kauffmann’s peers in the coaching ranks within the Southeast region. Other teams in the region besides Kentucky include fellow tennis powers Georgia, Ole Miss, Tennessee and Florida.
Kauffmann is one of eight regional winners in the running for ITA’s National Assistant Coach of the Year to be chosen later this week during the NCAA Singles and Doubles Championships in College Station, Texas.
Kentucky men’s tennis head coach Dennis Emery said Kauffmann was an integral part of the Wildcats’ success on the court this season.
“It is a very deserving award for him,” Emery said. “He has made a huge impact on our program in so many different ways, on the practice courts and during matches. He is one of the top associate coaches in the country.”
Kauffmann and Emery guided the Wildcats to their 20th NCAA appearance this spring. UK compiled an 18-11 record overall with a 6-5 ledger in the Southeastern Conference. Under their tutelage, senior Bruno Agostinelli reached the No. 2 spot nationally in early March. Agostinelli and partner Brad Cox were ranked among the top-25 doubles teams all season. Additionally, freshman Eric Quigley spent the majority of the year in the singles rankings.
“Most of my time is spent on the courts with our guys,” Kauffmann said. “Coach Emery and I share a lot of the coaching duties and I think he respects my work. To receive this honor means a lot because it means my peers believe I have been doing and saying the right things on the courts to our players even though they are not in practice with us every day.”
As a player at Kentucky, Kauffmann was a three-time All-American from 1996-98 and finished among the top 10 singles players nationally in each of those seasons. In 1997, he was ranked a career-best second in the nation after advancing to the Clay Court Singles Championship that year. Kauffmann won two-thirds of his singles matches as a Wildcat compiling a 105-54 record.
The Montsoult, France, native was also a three-time All SEC performer. In 1996, Kauffman was the semifinalist for the National Indoor Singles Championships. In the previous season, Kauffmann reached the quarterfinals of the Clay Court Singles Championship.
The 2009 NCAA Men’s Tennis Individual Championships begin Wednesday. Agostinelli and Cox, ranked 22nd in the country, will play in the NCAA Doubles Championships while Agostinelli is the fifth seed in the NCAA Singles Championships at College Station.
Click UKathletics.com for all of the latest Kentucky men’s tennis news.
ITA Assistant Coach of the Year
Northeast John Moreland Navy
Mideast Tony Bresky University of Virginia
Southeast Cedric Kauffmann University of Kentucky
Midwest Chris Drake Northwestern University
Central Yevgen Bondarchuk Oklahoma State University
South Central Bob McKinley Texas A&M University
Mountain Carlos Vargas New Mexico State
West Nick Carless Pepperdine
