Brian Kalbas

Brian Joseph Kalbas (born September 11, 1966) is an American college tennis coach. He has been the head coach of the North Carolina Tar Heels women's tennis team since 2003. He played college tennis and started his coaching career at the University of Notre Dame before becoming the head women's tennis coach at the College of William & Mary in 1992. He is a three-time Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) Coach of the Year and the winningest women's tennis coach in Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) history.[3]

Brian Kalbas
Kalbas at the 2023 US Open
Full nameBrian Joseph Kalbas[1]
Born (1966-09-11) September 11, 1966[2]
Height5 ft 7 in (170 cm)
CollegeNotre Dame (1985–1989)
Coaching career (1989–present)
Coaching awards and records
Awards

ITA Coach of the Year (1998, 2010, 2023)

Last updated on: July 1, 2023.

College career

Kalbas attended the University of Notre Dame in Notre Dame, Indiana, where he played for the Fighting Irish tennis team. He compiled a singles record of 85–54 playing mostly in the team's No. 1 or No. 2 spot.[3][4][5] A strong counterpuncher, he made up for his 5-foot-7-inch (1.70 m) size with good court awareness, grit, and a willingness to play through injury.[5][6][7] Teammates considered him an informal leader by his junior year.[8] As the team captain in his senior year in 1988–89, he missed half of the season due to a sore shoulder and other injuries and fell to No. 3; he had helped recruit the player, freshman David DiLucia, who replaced him in the top spot.[5][8] Before the end of his senior year, he was hired as an assistant coach for the next season.[4]

Coaching career

Kalbas remained an assistant coach at Notre Dame for three years.[3] In his last year, Notre Dame reached the final of the 1992 NCAA Championships.[3]

Kalbas served as the head coach of the William & Mary Tribe women's team from 1992 to 2003.[9] The team, under Kalbas, won the Colonial Athletic Association (CAA; now Coastal Athletic Association) league title nine times.[9] The Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) named him Coach of the Year in 1998, the year of William & Mary's second consecutive quarterfinal finish in the NCAA Championships.[9]

Kalbas became the head coach of the University of North Carolina women's team in the summer of 2003.[3] Since its breakthrough 2009–10 season, the team has consistently held a place in the top 5 of the ITA rankings, and they have won the ACC Championships six times and the ITA National Team Indoor Championships seven times.[3][10] In Kalbas's twentieth season, North Carolina won its first NCAA team title at the 2023 Championships; he had led the program to five previous appearances in the NCAA semifinals, including one final appearance in 2014.[11][12] One of his North Carolina players has won an NCAA singles title (Jamie Loeb in 2015), and three North Carolina teams have won the NCAA doubles title (Jenna Long/Sara Anundsen in 2007, Makenna Jones/Elizabeth Scotty in 2021, and Fiona Crawley/Carson Tanguilig in 2023).[3] Kalbas was named the national Coach of the Year in 2010 and 2023.[13][14] The active leader in NCAA Division I dual match wins as a coach, he has signed a contract extension with North Carolina through 2027.[3][15]

Personal life

Kalbas has two children with his wife, Suzanne.[3] His brother, Tim Kalbas, was a fellow member of the Notre Dame tennis team.[6][16]

References
  1. "The University of Notre Dame du Lac 1989 Commencement". University of Notre Dame. May 19–21, 1989. p. 54. Retrieved July 1, 2023.
  2. Carolina Women's Tennis [@unc_wtennis] (September 11, 2017). "Happy Birthday to this guy who is still moving and grooving like he's in his 20's". Retrieved September 11, 2023 – via Instagram.
  3. "Brian Kalbas – Women's Tennis Coach". goheels.com. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Athletics. Retrieved June 1, 2023.
  4. Mitchell, Bob (May 1, 1989). "Irish ready for future after season-ending win" (PDF). The Observer (student newspaper). p. 14. Retrieved July 1, 2023 – via Archives of the University of Notre Dame.
  5. Mitchell, Bob (April 28, 1989). "Kalbas 'everything' to Irish" (PDF). The Observer (student newspaper). p. 21. Retrieved July 1, 2023 – via Archives of the University of Notre Dame.
  6. Mitchell, Bob (February 8, 1988). "ND netters remain unbeaten, dominate visiting Toledo" (PDF). The Observer (student newspaper). p. 14. Retrieved July 1, 2023 – via Archives of the University of Notre Dame.
  7. Nold, Bob (August 12, 1984). "Teams will miss departing young players". Akron Beacon Journal. p. E11. Retrieved July 3, 2023 – via Newspapers.com. Another citation for this height: Dulac, Gerry (June 2, 1983). "Kalbas Rebounds for Third". The Pittsburgh Press. pp. E9–10. Retrieved July 3, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. Travers, George (April 29, 1988). "Men's tennis finishes season at Illinois State" (PDF). The Observer (student newspaper). p. 25. Retrieved July 1, 2023 – via Archives of the University of Notre Dame.
  9. "Brian Kalbas 2015 Hall of Fame Wrap Up". tribeathletics.com. William & Mary Athletics. May 10, 2015. Retrieved July 1, 2023.
  10. "50 Years: Unrelenting Excellence". goheels.com. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Athletics. April 13, 2022. Retrieved June 1, 2023.
  11. Chiesa, Victoria (May 20, 2023). "2023 NCAA Championships: 'Special' UNC team wins its first-ever D1 women's team title". United States Tennis Association. Retrieved July 1, 2023.
  12. "Coach Brian Kalbas Building Powerhouse Tennis Program At Chapel Hill". chapelboro.com. June 4, 2014. Retrieved July 1, 2023.
  13. "Kalbas Named National Coach Of The Year". tarheelblue.cstv.com. June 16, 2010. Archived from the original on June 21, 2010.
  14. "2023 Division I Women's Tennis ITA National Awards". Intercollegiate Tennis Association. June 12, 2023. Retrieved July 1, 2023.
  15. "Brian Kalbas Agrees to Contract Extension". goheels.com. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Athletics. June 29, 2023. Retrieved June 1, 2023.
  16. LaFleur, Pete. "An Irish Day in the Sun". University of Notre Dame. Retrieved July 1, 2023.
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