Radford University Athletics

Conference Regular Season Titles: 6 (2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2012)
Conference Tournament Titles: 5 (2007, 2008, 2009, 2011, 2012)
NCAA Tournament Appearances: 5 (2007, 2008, 2009, 2011, 2012)
Six-Time Big South Coach of the Year: (2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011)
NCAA Singles Appearances: 7 (Martin Sayer, 2006-09 / Ivan Salec, 2010-11 / Nick Sayer, 2012)
NCAA Doubles Appearances: 1 (Martin Sayer / Zack Watson, 2009)
ITA Team National Rankings: 5 (2008 / #55, 2009 / #47, 2010 / #56, 2011 / #63, 2012 / #71)

Mike Anderson, the most successful coach in the history of Radford University athletics, is in his 21st season as leader of the men’s tennis program.
 
Since taking over in 1997, Anderson has put together one of the most dominant programs in the history of the Big South Conference. Though his 276-199 record and list of accomplishments are staggering, the six-time Coach of the Year will be the first to admit complacency isn’t an option.
 
From 2006-2012, Anderson’s Highlanders were 127-36 overall and 41-3 in conference regular season matches, while winning six Big South regular season titles and making a school-record five NCAA Tournament appearances.
 
In addition to its postseason resume, which includes a 17-3 record in Big South Tournament matches from 2006-2012, Radford won 57 of its 60 home matches.
 
Earning a reputation as a solid recruiter, Anderson has had several Highlanders over the years gain conference, regional and national recognition. In the past 18 years, Radford has garnered 49 all-conference selections, 34 in singles and 15 in doubles.
 
During Anderson’s tenure, Radford has produced six Big South Players of the Year (Martin Sayer, 2006-09; Nick Sayer, 2012; Patrick O'Keefe, 2015) and five Big South Freshmen of the Year.
 
Along with the team’s success, Radford has been represented in the NCAA Singles Championships seven times. Martin Sayer earned the league’s automatic bid from 2006-09, while Ivan Salec (2010-11) and Nick Sayer (2012) advanced the last three years thanks to their national ranking. In 2009, Martin Sayer and Zack Watson became the first and only duo in school history to earn a doubles invite to the National Championships.
 
With Anderson, Martin Sayer helped Radford men’s tennis gain the national recognition and respect it has today. In the fall of 2008, he was the only active student-athlete named to the league’s “Best of the Best” as part of the Big South’s 25th Anniversary celebration. The all-time winningest player in Radford history with 114 victories, Sayer recorded NCAA Tournament singles wins in 2006 and 2007 before concluding his storybook career with a 17-13 mark against nationally-ranked foes.
 
As for individual academic accolades, Mehdi Benhammou (2006-09) was a three-time member of the Big South All-Academic squad and was named the 2009 Co-Scholar Athlete of the Year, while Igor Ogrizek was also tabbed the league’s top men’s tennis student-athlete in 2010. Nick Sayer became the third Radford men's tennis player to be named Big South Scholar-Athlete of the Year when he earned the honor in 2014.
 
Anderson’s teams play hard on the court, but he believes athletes should be willing to give something back to the community. His teams have been involved in numerous community service projects in the New River Valley and his motivation for doing so is simple: he wants his players to recognize how fortunate they are to play tennis at the major college level.
 
His commitment to excellence has shown in his team’s success both on and off the court. It was recognized in 2007, earning the Big South Sportsmanship Award, which is voted on by Big South student-athletes in their respective sports.
 
Anderson was a long-time coach on the United States Tennis Association circuit, and has coached USTA adult league teams since 1985 in the New River area, in addition to coaching at several other levels of competition over the years. He was active in the Queen City Tennis League in Charlotte, N.C., from 1975-85, before moving to the New River Valley.
 
Anderson’s favorite quote comes from Mark Twain: “Do the right thing, it will please a few and astound many.” As a coach he does the right thing and expects the same from his players.
 
Anderson, who has two sons and a daughter that attended RU, married the former Leila Hagler on July 4, 2015.