Fort Lauderdale, Fla.----Wingate University men's and women's tennis coach Michael Cabana has had a big year. The 2019 NCAA Division II national Coach of the Year for women's tennis, Cabana was inducted into the Cardinal Gibbons Catholic (Fla.) High School Athletic Hall of Fame Saturday as a member of three state championship men's tennis teams.
 
A 1997 Cardinal Gibbons alumnus, Cabana was joined by his sister (Katie Cabana Miness), his mom (Jo Cabana) and his brother (Matthew Cabana) as 2019-20 inductees. Katie was inducted in the student-athlete category. Coach Jo Cabana was included for leading the Chiefs (and her sons) to four state championships (1995-98). Michael played for the 1995, 1996 and 1997 teams, while Matthew was a member of the 1998 state title squad. Jo Cabana was inducted into the CGCHS Athletic Hall of Fame as an individual in 2007. All total, she led the Chiefs to 15 state championships (eight men's titles, seven women's crowns).
 
"ONCE-IN-A-LIFETIME"
 
"This acknowledgement is special to me," Michael Cabana says. "The opportunity to play on these teams and to reconnect with these guys is very exciting. Obviously, it is an honor to be coached by my mom…and to have this once-in-a-lifetime chance to have the entire family share in this moment."
 
WHAT THEY ARE SAYING
 
Wingate University vice-president and director of athletics Steve Poston: "We congratulate Coach Cabana on his induction into the Cardinal Gibbons Catholic High School Athletic Hall of Fame. Michael has distinguished himself as an exceptional student-athlete and now as a highly successful collegiate coach."
 
"This well-deserved honor not only acknowledges his Hall of Fame career, but also recognizes him as the Hall of Fame person he is. I am certain that being inducted with other members of his family makes this even more special. Congratulations, Michael. All of us in Bulldog Nation salute you and share in your accomplishments."
 
MICHAEL CABANA FILE (CGCHS '97)
 
>2019 ITA National Coach of the Year for NCAA Division II women's tennis
>Cabana is 205-89 overall in 13 seasons as WU women's tennis coach (105-16 SAC)
>On the men's side, he is 197-97 overall in the same time frame (102-18 SAC)
>2019 ITA Southeast Region Coach of the Year for both men's and women's tennis
>The 2019 ITA region honor was his second on the women's side
>Cabana is a 14-time South Atlantic Conference Coach of the Year (eight women, six men)
>Bulldogs have piled up an incredible 26 conference championships over the last 11 seasons
>Cabana's two teams have a combined 378-124 overall record during this time span
>Wingate is 200-14 combined in the SAC in the same 11 years
>The women are 89-2 overall in SAC action since the start of the 2011 season
>Cabana has had 89 All-SAC performers in his 13 years
>Other individual numbers include two SAC Players of the Year, six SAC Freshmen of the Year, five SAC Scholar-Athletes of the Year and two SAC Elite 20 Award winners
>The Bulldogs have had six student-athletes earn Academic All-America honors in his career
>In 2019, Wingate had the ITA Southeast Region Men's and Women's Rookies of the Year and the Senior Female Player of the Year
>The Bulldogs also had the region's ITA Arthur Ashe Leadership & Sportsmanship Award winner for the second straight year. Wingate had the national winner in 2018
>Cabana is 1997 CGCHS grad; he earned his bachelor's degree at Catawba ('01) and his MASM from Wingate ('08)
>Cabana and his wife Meredith have two daughters; he is the son of Fran and Jo Cabana
 
JO CABANA FILE
 
>Currently English teacher and head tennis coach at Charlotte Catholic High
>26 state championships as a head coach
>Two at St. Thomas Aquinas (both women), 15 at Cardinal Gibbons and nine at Charlotte Catholic (all women)
>Named the National High School Women's Tennis Coach of the Year in 2001 (while at CGCHS)
>North Carolina women's tennis Coach of the Year in 2018-19
>Four times Charlotte Observer Coach of the Year
>Six times conference coach of the year
>Nine times N.C. women's state champions
>Charlotte Catholic High School is the winningest women's tennis team in N.C. 
>Cabana's overall women's record in N.C. is 328-51 (2003-present)
>Her men's record is 60-17 in N.C. with a conference title in 2016
>Jo Cabana was inducted into the Cardinal Gibbons Athletic Hall of Fame in 2007
 
KATIE CABANA MINESS FILE (CGCHS '98)
 
>Katie Cabana Miness played one singles and one doubles for SAC rival Carson-Newman
>She taught at Weddington High School and coached tennis at Weddington Swim and Racquet Club for two years each
>After her time in Weddington, she was the assistant tennis pro at Charlotte Country Club for seven years
>She moved to Michigan and started a family while her husband (Andy) finished his PhD
>Andy and Katie Miness now live in Allentown, Pa. with their three children
>She continues to teach tennis and looks to start her own program in the Lehigh Valley this year
 
"It is an honor to be inducted into the Cardinal Gibbons Athletic Hall of Fame as an individual this year, but what makes it more special is that I share this achievement with my mother, Josephine Cabana, and my two brothers, Michael and Matthew Cabana," Katie Cabana Miness says.
 
MATTHEW CABANA FILE (CGCHS '01)
 
>Matthew Cabana played tennis at the University of Richmond post-CGCHS
>Cabana and the Spiders won three Atlantic 10 conference championships
 >Following his graduation, he taught tennis at Carmel Country Club in Charlotte (asst. pro)
>Also, Cabana spent time at the Country Club of Salisbury as a director of tennis
>At present, Cabana works for Bank of America as a Treasury and Fulfillment Specialist in Digital Services on the Global Technology and Operations side of the bank
 
"Being inducted to the Cardinal Gibbons Athletic Hall of Fame is a great honor, but getting to celebrate it with my whole family while they are also being inducted couldn't be more special," Matthew Cabana says. 

WINGATE UNIVERSITY
 
A comprehensive, independent and growing university, Wingate serves more than 3,600 students in North Carolina. Founded in 1896, the University offers 37 undergraduate majors as well as graduate and professional programs. Wingate is home to the Cannon College of Arts and Sciences, the Levine College of Health Sciences, the Byrum School of Business, the Thayer School of Education and the School of Sport Sciences. Wingate blends in-class exploration with out-of-class application to deliver an uncommon and life-changing educational experience.
 
In addition to a robust intramural athletics program, Wingate student athletes compete in 22 NCAA Division II sports. The University has won the South Atlantic Conference Echols Athletic Excellence Award for the past 13 years. Wingate is first in the 2000s among NCAA Division II and North Carolina's colleges and universities with 115 CoSIDA Academic All-America® selections. Wingate is tops among all SAC schools with 124 lifetime Academic All-America® honorees. For more information on WU athletics, go to www.wingatebulldogs.com. Current news and videos can be found at www.wingate.edu.