Intercollegiate Tennis Association

ITA Student-Athlete Podcast - Amelia Rajecki, NC State

Welcome to the very first episode of the ITA Student-Athlete Podcast, with your host Abi Wild, a senior women’s tennis player at Hawaii Pacific University. This podcast was created by college tennis players for college tennis players to share the stories and experiences of our unique sport with the world.

In today’s episode, Abi sits down with NC State women’s tennis senior Amelia Rajecki, who is someone that she has grown up playing tennis with, and against, in England. Since starting her collegiate career at NC State, Amelia has risen to become one of the top players in all of college tennis, being named an ITA All-American in singles and doubles in 2023, while earning a career-high ITA Singles Ranking of No. 3 in the Nov. 15 rankings release.

Over the next hour, Amelia and Abi will discuss many different aspects of being a college tennis player, including, why she chose to come to college America and NC state, her success, and what her plans are next. We hope you enjoy this inside look into college tennis, and be on the lookout for new episodes every month for the next four months.

Learning from Other Olympic Sports - Lindsay Peterson, University of Nebraska

Lindsay Peterson is a former standout player for Nebraska Volleyball helping the team to an NCAA title in 2000. She coached at Northern Colorado and Virginia Tech before taking on the Director of Operations role at the University of Nebraska.

 

Lindsay has enjoyed a front-row seat to the rise in popularity of women’s college volleyball in recent years and in this podcast, Dave and Lindsay discuss the factors that have led to the growth of interest in volleyball and other collegiate women’s sports; how volleyball coaches have helped grow attendance at their matches and the story behind the world record women’s sports attendance record set last year.

Maximizing the ZAMA Health App and Mental Health Advice - Brendan Sullivan & Jon Fagg

Brendan Sullivan, the founder and CEO of the newest ITA partner, ZAMA Health joins Jon Fagg, the UTA Athletic Director and host, Dave Mullins, to discuss how student-athletes and coaches at UTA are maximizing their use of the ZAMA Health app. They discuss some of the key features of the app which is free for all ITA member programs, the current state of intercollegiate athletics and its impact on the mental health of coaches, and several best practices to ensure the safety of student-athletes.

Succession Success: Nadia Abdala, Head Women’s Tennis Coach, University of San Diego

Nadia Abdala was named the head women’s tennis coach at the University of San Diego (USD) after serving 8 years as the assistant coach. She has made an immediate impact as the head coach helping the team jump to another level of competitiveness amongst the best teams in the nation.

 

In this podcast Nadia discusses how she managed her relationships with her players during the transition from assistant coach to head coach, her passion to help women in coaching, and her new favorite drill.

Special Episode: Ask Me Anything with ITA COO Dave Mullins

Dave Mullins is the current Chief Operating Officer with the ITA and has served in this role since 2019. Before joining the ITA, Dave spent 12 years as a coach in college tennis, last serving as the head women's tennis coach at the University of Oklahoma. Dave also spent time in college tennis as a player, competing for Fresno State where he would earn All-American honors.

In this podcast, Dave & Lauren Conching discuss the questions coaches submitted, covering everything from WTN to managing dual matches to rules’ questions with Anthony. If you enjoy this unique podcast, let us know so we can do more!

Finishing Strong by Committing to the Process - Andres Pedroso

Andres Pedroso is in his second stint with the University of Virginia after serving as the Associate Head Men’s coach from 2010 – 2014. He was named the Head Men’s Coach in 2017 and in his short career as a head coach, he has won back-to-back NCAA National Team Championships in 2022 and 2023. He is a three-time ACC Coach of the Year, three-time ITA Atlantic Region Head Coach of the Year, and was twice named the ITA National Coach of the Year

 

In this podcast, Dave inquires about Andre’s fascinating background having worked on Wall Street and flirting with a career as a sports agent. They also discuss the importance of scheduling, recruiting the right fit and how Andres deals with the pressures of being a top DI coach.

Serving More Than Yourself - Dan Oosterhous

Dan Oosterhous was named the Athletic Director for Recruiting at the Air Force Academy this past summer after 14 years as the head men’s tennis coach. Dan achieved the rank of Lieutenant Colonel in the Air Force after serving in multiple combat-support overseas deployments. In 2013 he suffered two brain stem strokes but recovered to compete as a member of the 2014 and 2016 USA Invictus Games team and continue his coaching career.

 

Dan has served his country, the Air Force Academy, and college tennis with great distinction, and in this podcast we learn more about Dan’s new role, his views on the current and future state of NCAA Olympic sports, what lessons coaches can apply from the US military and some recruiting insights.

Nutrition for College Coaches & More - Tara Collingwood

Tara Collingwood is a renowned Sports Dietician, author and TV personality. She has served as the Dietician for the Orlando Magic, UCF Athletics, the WWE and the USTA. She is a performance coach at the prestigious Johnson & Johnson Performance Institute where she teaches executives how to manage their energy. In this podcast she discusses how coaches can improve their own energy levels, stay healthy throughout the long dual match season, how to speak with athletes about their dietary habits and much much more.

Roots & Wings - John Shackelford

John Shackelford served 33 seasons as the head men’s tennis coach and three seasons as Director of Tennis at the University of the South - Sewanee. During his tenure, he won 551 matches and 12 conference titles. In 2021 he was named as the Director of Athletics and continues to serve the Sewanee community, coaches and student-athletes.

 

In this podcast, John and Dave discuss John’s commitment to one University over 38 years, how John found ways to develop as a coach, the challenges of sustaining success over a long period of time and advice for coaches with families.

Faith & Heart - Mark Booras, Tulane University

Mark Booras, the head men’s tennis coach at Tulane University for the past 14 seasons, received some devastating personal health news during the 2023 spring season taking him away from his team, his family, and everything else in his life for several months.

In this podcast, we discuss Mark’s journey over the last several months, his recovery from a heart transplant to date, and his hopes for the future. Mark also shares some advice on the necessary skills the current college tennis coach needs to acquire to excel in this profession, the importance of patience, and some lessons he learned from coaching some of college tennis's finest players.