Rob Rye Named Prairie Fire Tennis Coach

7/16/2012 7:33:00 PM

Rob Rye

Galesburg, IL – A former college tennis standout with coaching experience at the NCAA Division III level has been named the head men’s and women’s tennis coach at Knox.

Knox athletic director Chad Eisele announced on Monday, July 16, that Rob Rye has accepted the position.  He’ll begin his new duties on August 1. 

Rye most recently was an assistant men’s and women’s tennis coach at Division III Coe College in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, a post he held since the fall of 2010. Prior to that, Rye was a volunteer assistant tennis coach for two seasons at Chapman University in Orange, California.

Rye helped coach the Coe men’s and women’s tennis teams to Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (IIAC) championships and first round victories in the NCAA Tournament during the 2011-2012 season.  The Kohawks finished second in the IIAC in both men’s and women’s tennis during Rye’s first season as an assistant.

Rye said he’s very excited to be taking on the head coaching duties at Knox.

“Practically growing up on the court with tennis players and coaches in my family, playing high-level tennis in high school and college, and serving as an assistant coach for the past four years has prepared me well for this wonderful opportunity that I have been working toward my entire life,” he said. 

“It’s a dream come true to be able to take this step in my coaching career at a school that has such a strong tradition of excellence.”

The women’s tennis team at Chapman University was ranked as high as #10 nationally in NCAA Division III while players on both the women’s and men’s teams qualified for the national championships when Rye was on the coaching staff.

Rye played four years at Whitman University (Walla Walla, Washington) and was a captain of the tennis team, which he said was consistently ranked in the top 25 in Division III – including #12 in the country in 2007.  Along with his success on the court, Rye was named to the ITA All-Academic Team twice.

In addition, Rye has seven years of tennis teaching experience and received his USPTA certification in 2009.

“There is a great potential for the Knox tennis teams to become one of the strongest programs in the Midwest Conference.  I anxiously look forward to working with an enthusiastic group of players as well as the rest of the staff at Knox in starting on a challenging journey of improvement.”

Rye earned a bachelor’s degree in rhetoric and film studies from Whitman in 2008.