Men's Tennis 7/12/2017 9:30:00 AM

ROLANDO VARGAS TABBED NEW MEN'S TENNIS HEAD COACH

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RADFORD, Va. – Rolando Vargas has been named the next Radford men's tennis head coach, Director of Athletics Robert Lineburg announced Wednesday morning. Vargas comes to Radford after spending seven seasons as the head coach for the men's and women's programs at Auburn University at Montgomery.

"We are very excited to have Rolando Vargas as our new men's tennis head coach. Rolando has had tremendous success at Auburn Montgomery and we are confident that he will help lead Radford tennis back to a championship level," Lineburg said. "He has tremendous energy and passion for the game. His track record shows that he gets the most out of his student-athletes."

In Vargas' seven seasons, he helped the men's team to a 140-37 record and the women's squad to an impressive 150-35 mark. During the 2017 season, Vargas led both programs to national and regional rankings while playing its first full NCAA Division II schedule. The 2017 season saw the men's program finish ranked 13^th nationally and the women rank 19^th in the country.

"I would like to thank Robert Lineburg, Stephanie Ballein, Cory Durand and everyone on the committee for giving me this opportunity. I would also like to thank Steve Crotz, Jessie Rosa and everyone at Auburn Montgomery for their support," Vargas noted. "My family has been extremely encouraging and they are excited about the upcoming move to the area. I am thrilled to be joining the Radford family and to be a Highlander."

Vargas guided the women's program to four NAIA National Championships (2011, 2012, 2013, 2015) and the men to a runner-up finish in 2013. From 2011-2016, Vargas led the men's and women's programs to a fifth-place finish or better in the NAIA. During that time, he led both programs to six straight Southern States Athletic Conference titles.

Vargas is a four-time NAIA Women's Coach of the Year and a nine-time SSAC Coach of the Year (five men's and four women's). In his seven seasons: Vargas coached 58 NAIA All-Americans, 30 ITA All-Americans and 10 conference players of the year. Academically, 12 of his players were named a Daktronics NAIA Scholar-Athlete and eight were named CoSIDA Academic All-Americans.

Vargas attended college at Troy University, where he played No. 1 singles and doubles for the Trojans' tennis team. As a doubles player, he defeated the No. 8 team in the nation from the University of Alabama. He made the 2003 All-Academic team during his senior season, and was a student assistant in 2004 when the Trojans were champions of the Atlantic Sun Conference. Vargas received a bachelor's degree in international business and a master's in sport management.

After leaving Troy, Vargas played professionally for three years, with a ranking as high as 839 ATP. Prior to arriving at AUM, he was an assistant coach at his alma mater from 2007-09. He is a United States Professional Tennis Association (USPTA) certified coach, earning the status of Elite Certified Professional, the highest available level.

"The campus is beautiful, academics are great and the tennis program has had previous success that I am looking forward to building upon," Vargas added. "I am also looking forward to recruiting student-athletes who will fit our culture and who want to do well on-and-off the court."

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