Mary Dailey enters her first season as head coach of the women's tennis program and will be in charge of keeping the winning tradition alive at UIC. "I am looking to continue our streak of conference championships and to make it consecutive appearances in the NCAA Tournament," said Dailey. "My philosophy is work hard, make constant improvements, but make sure to have fun while doing it." Prior to arriving at UIC, Dailey spent the last four years at Texas Tech University, serving three years as assistant women's tennis coach and last season as the interim head coach of the Red Raiders. While at Texas Tech, she was named the 1997-98 Most Valuable Assistant Coach at the university. Dailey also picked up valuable coaching experience as an assistant at the University of South Carolina for two years and during a two year stint as head coach for the men's and women's tennis programs at Slippery Rock. The Erie, Pa., native got her start in collegiate coaching in 1989 as an assistant coach at Arizona State. In addition to her extensive coaching background, Dailey also sports a wealth of playing experience on her resume. A 1984 cum laude graduate of the University of Miami (Fla.), Dailey was an All-America selection for the nationally-ranked Hurricane tennis program. She made two appearances in the NCAA Tournament, qualifying individually in both singles and doubles in 1983 and ‘84. After graduating, she played professionally for four years, from 1985-88, where she was ranked among the world's finest in both singles and doubles on the Women's Professional Tennis Circuit. Additionally, Dailey has served as director of several tennis camps, including the Nike Tennis Camp in Boca Raton, Fla., worked as the personal coach of touring professional Nicole Arendt, a 1994 Wimbledon doubles semi-finalist, and served as assistant tennis professional at Patch Reef Park in Boca Raton, Calif., and Seaview Tennis Club in Palm Beach, Fla. Dailey inherits a UIC tennis program that captured its third consecutive Midwestern Collegiate Conference Championship in 1999 and made its first-ever appearance in the NCAA Tournament. She will have the luxury of five letterwinners returning from a year ago, including All-MCC honorees Emina Curic and Jackie Farr. "They are a really excited and energized bunch of kids," remarked Dailey of her squad. "I see them making a lot of improvement and being very successful this season." |
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