Terri Sisk Hometown: Talladega, Ala. Position: Head Coach Experience: 4th Year Alma Mater: Jacksonville State, 1997

When Tulane Director of Athletics Rick Dickson began his search for a head women's tennis coach to restart the program, he was looking for an inspirational leader, a builder of character and a skillful tactician who could take a team from ground zero and make it an immediate contender. In other words, he was looking for Terri Sisk.

Upon accepting her current position on July 11, 2007, Sisk inherited a storied program but one that suspended operations in Fall 2005 and lay dormant for almost three years. Over the last two years, however, Tulane has posted a combined 25-21 overall record (543) and a 7-6 regular-season mark against Conference USA opponents.

Along the way, two Green Wave student-athletes have earned All C-USA and All-Louisiana honors on a combined six occasions as Mariam Kurdadze earned first-team all-league and all-state honors both years of the program's current era while Emma Levy earned second-team honors from both organizations following the 2009-10 season. In addition, Kurdadze was named the Louisiana Sports Writers Association's Freshman of the Year in 2009.

A tireless recruiter, Sisk's inaugural class was rated the No. 25 recruiting class in the nation by the Tennis Recruiting Network and the 2009-10 rookies earned the No. 7 spot in TRN's list of mid-major programs.

In addition to the effort on the court, the Tulane team has been equally as impressive in the classroom as members of the Green Wave squad have earned C-USA Commissioner's Academic Honor Roll recognition 12 times over the last two seasons, including Jessica Lange who twice garnered C-USA Academic Medal honors for sporting a GPA of 3.75. Following the 2010 season, Sisk's team was rated in the Top 10 percent of all Division I women's tennis programs in the NCAA's Academic Progress Rates (APR).

Taking the court for the first time since Fall 2005, the 2008-09 Tulane team featured eight true freshman and opened the inaugural season under Sisk's tutelage with a 7-0 win over Alabama State on Jan. 16, 2008, in Montgomery, Ala. The victory was one of four wins over the first five dual matches of the Green Wave's re-start season, and Tulane concluded the year 12-12 overall and 3-4 in league play. Sisk's first Tulane team earned the No. 10 seed in the C-USA Championship, had a season-best four-match winning streak from Feb. 27-March 8 and also enjoyed a three-match streak from Jan. 22-25.

Last season, Tulane added three talented freshmen and improved to 13-9 overall, 4-2 in C-USA action, earned the No. 6 seed in the 2010 league championship tournament and earned a 4-0 postseason win over UAB on April 22, 2010. The Green Wave set a new standard during its second year back by winning five straight matches from March 22-April 22, including the C-USA Tournament win over the Blazers.

The Green Wave opened the spring season ranked sixth in the Southern Region by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) and made its first appearance in the national rankings on March 16, 2010, when Tulane was listed at No. 67. In addition, Kurdadze was tabbed the No. 10 singles player in the Region, Levy was No. 16, and the pair joined forces to end the season as the No. 9 doubles team in the Southern Region at the end of the year.

Prior to taking on the task of rebuilding Tulane's women's tennis program, Sisk spent the previous five seasons as the head women's tennis coach at Samford University in Birmingham, Ala. With the Bulldogs, Sisk led the program to three Ohio Valley Conference (OVC) Championships - two tournament titles (2004, 2006) and one regular-season crown (2007) - and a pair of NCAA Regional Tournament appearances (2004, 2006). The team's trip to the NCAAs in 2004 marked the first time in program history the Bulldogs advanced to the postseason and Samford finished one win shy of Sisk's third NCAA berth after finishing as runners-up in the 2007 OVC Tournament.

She led the Bulldogs to a combined 69-37 record (.651), including a 20-2 OVC mark during her final two seasons in Birmingham. In 2007, Samford was a perfect 10-0 in league play during the regular season and Sisk was named OCV Coach of the Year. She helped six student-athletes earn All-OVC honors on seven occasions, including two-time all-conference honoree Sarah McKey (All-Atlantic Sun in 2004, All-OVC in 2006). In addition, she helped Katie McMiller and Emily White claim first-team All-OVC honors in 2005 and 2007, respectively.

A standout player in her own right, Sisk starred at Jacksonville (Ala.) State where lettered three years for the Gamecocks and earned All-Gulf South Conference honors in 1991. A serious skiing accident after her junior season interrupted her academic and athletic careers, but Sisk returned to the University in 1995 and completed her degree two years later.

In her final season as a student-athlete at Jacksonville State, Sisk was ranked nationally in both singles and double action and helped lead the Gamecocks to a GSC Championship. In 2003, Jacksonville State awarded Sisk the prestigious HPER Alumni of the Year Award for outstanding professional achievement in tennis.

After graduation, Sisk began her professional career as a tennis professional at Van Der Meer Shipyard Racquet Club (Hilton Head Island, S.C.) in 1998 where she worked in various aspects of daily operations for a tennis facility under the direction of Dennis Van Der Meer. She taught private lessons and group clinics, organized tournaments and social events for members, directed corporate tournaments for Delta Airlines and ran practices and drills for world class players.

From there, she became the tennis pro as Brook Highland Racquet Club (Birmingham, Ala.) in 2000 where she was responsible for numerous tennis programs and special events. Among her responsibilities were teaching private lessons and team clinics, organizing all club events and junior tournaments, and coordinating United States Tennis Association (USTA) and Interclub leagues.

Following a one-year stint at Brook Highland, Sisk served as the director of tennis at Sportsfirst Greystone (Birmingham, Ala.) and was responsible for all operational and management of the private tennis club. At Sportsfirst Greystone, she worked with member programs, USTA and softcourt leagues, supervised court and facility maintenance, and served as internal and external public relations personnel through special events, socials, junior programs and tournaments.

A native of Talladega, Ala., Sisk completed her bachelor's degree in recreation administration and physical education from Jacksonville State in 1997, and is U.S. Professional Tennis Registry Certified.

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