Andrew Connolly completed his second year as graduate assistant for Wingate men's and women's tennis in the spring of 2022. Over his tenure, the men's team finished 26-12 and the women went 32-10, making an NCAA Tournament appearance in each of the four seasons of play. The Bulldogs also dominated in South Atlantic Conference action over Connolly's two seasons on staff, with three regular season conference championships and the 2021 Women's SAC Tournament title.
Wingate's team success was apparent in the national polls as well, as the men reached as high as #20 in 2022, reaching as high as #12 in 2021. The women were also a top-15 program in the country over Connolly's time, reaching highs of 11 and 12 in the national polls in 2022 and '21, respectively.
The Bulldogs' team success was matched with plenty of individual success as well. Camilla Ciaccia and Suzuka Sambyakugari became the program's first doubles team to be selected an ITA All-American in 2022. Meanwhile, on the men's side, Florian Walcher was named 2022 SAC Freshman of the Year. Between the two teams, eight Bulldogs earned all-league honors in 2022, while seven were named to All-SAC teams in 2021.
Wingate tennis student-athletes excelled in the classroom as well with Connolly on staff. Both Wingate tennis squads were named All-Scholar teams in 2022, with 13 student-athletes earning ITA All-Scholar recognition. Ciaccia was named 2022 SAC Scholar Athlete in women's tennis.
Connolly came to Wingate University after 1 season as an assistant women’s coach at Christopher Newport University. During the shortened 2019-20 campaign, Christopher Newport ranked as high as No. 25 in the ITA team rankings and finished ranked No. 31. The 2019 season saw Ranta-aho and Reed make history as the first ever tandem to earn a national doubles ranking of #18 in the final poll of the season. Additionally in 2019, Ranta-aho was pegged No. 46 in the country according to the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) singles rankings.
Connolly was an instrumental piece in the recruiting process. The tennis recruiting network released its top 25 rankings for the incoming freshman class and Christopher Newport women's tennis earned the No. 22 spot.
Before beginning his coaching career, Connolly graduated from NAIA national powerhouse Keiser University in 2019. While at Keiser, Connolly helped lead the Seahawks to three consecutive Sun Conference Championships from 2017-2019 as well as a #2 NAIA national ranking in 2018. During his time there, the Seahawks advanced to the NAIA National Championships Semi-Finals in 2017 and the Finals in 2018.
While competing at Keiser, Connolly was ranked as high as 5th in the ITA South Region and 7th in the NAIA in doubles. That year he amassed a 12-12 doubles record, which included a 6-4 record at the #1 slot, with partner Marc Algeri. Subsequently, Connolly and his partner were named NAIA All-Americans for the 2017-2018 season. In addition, Connolly was also named Sun Conference Player of the Week in the spring of 2017.
Before his collegiate career, Connolly trained at the prestigious T Bar M Tennis Academy in Dallas, Texas. A 4-star tennis recruit out of Texas Virtual Academy High School, Connolly was ranked as high as 114th in the USTA and 7th in the state of Texas as reported by TennisRecruiting.net. He achieved a career high UTR of 12.5 and an overall record of 38-21 with notable wins over both blue chip and five-star recruits.
Connolly returned to Dallas to coach at T Bar M High Performance Junior Tennis Academy as well as at the Canyon Creek Tennis Academy. He also has spent time as a coach at the Wilson Collegiate Tennis Camp.
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What they are saying about Coach Connolly:
“Wingate is getting an excellent young coach in Andrew Connolly. He will bring a ton of passion, knowledge, and experience that will help all of his players improve and grow. Andrew is extremely dedicated to his craft, both on court and off, and I know that Wingate will be an even stronger program with Andrew on board.”
David Weiner
Head Women’s Tennis Coach
Christopher Newport University
“Very happy to hear the news. Andrew was a great player for our program at Keiser and played a big role in helping us achieve conference championships and national prominence while he was here. Andrew understands the game and knows what it takes to compete at a high level. Wingate got a good one in Andrew. The sky is the limit with this one.
Daniel Finn
Head Men’s and Women’s Coach
Keiser University
“Wingate is getting an energized and passionate tennis coach in Andrew Connolly who should help the tennis program achieve their goals on the national scene. What a great hire!”
Robert Hubbard
Head Tennis Coach
Sam Houston State University
