On May 30, N.C. State announced the hiring of Simon Earnshaw as head coach of the women’s tennis team. Earnshaw coached the men’s and women’s tennis programs at Armstrong Atlantic State University for 15 successful years and won nine Division II national championships in his tenure at the school.
After becoming the head coach of the Pirates’ men’s and women’s programs in 1999, Earnshaw developed an exquisite resume by transforming AASU into a tennis powerhouse.
Earnshaw led the women’s team to win six national championships (2005, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2012, 2013) and won three with the men’s team (2008, 2009, 2012).
Earnshaw hadn’t always dreamed of filling trophy halls and winning championships. At a young age, the Holmfirth, England native had aspirations other than tennis.
“My father was involved in motor racing,” Earnshaw said. “One thing I would’ve liked to do in my life was work for a Formula One team. I didn’t really pick up tennis until quite a bit later; not until I was 12 or 13 years old.”
Once discovering his abilities in tennis as a teenager, Earnshaw discovered a true appreciation for the sport. He idolized several European players, such as Mats Wilander and Tim Henman, and by applying his blue-collar work ethic to tennis, he relentlessly worked at his game and continually improved.
“You’re going to get out of something what you put into it,” Earnshaw said. “It’s a question of earning your way, whether that be through an accumulation or just an ability to get experience and a chance to apply that in the best way possible.”
Earnshaw played collegiate tennis at Georgia College & State University. In each of his four years in the program, his team reached top 10 national rankings. Earnshaw earned his Bachelor’s of Science in chemistry in 1996 and his Masters of Education in health and physical education two years later.
In 1998, Earnshaw was hired as the assistant coach to the men’s and women’s tennis teams at Armstrong Atlantic. He became head coach a year later and made history in his decade and a half with the school.
When accruing his nine national championships, the teams appeared in 12 NCAA Division II finals, 16 Final Fours, and 21 NCAA quarterfinals.
While with the AASU Pirates, Earnshaw accumulated an overall 411-35 record with the women’s program (.922) and an overall 336-83 record with the men’s team (.802) for a total head coaching record of 747-118 (.864).
Earnshaw is known as a coach who is a catalyst in making players better.
“You must create an environment where they’re all trying to make each other better and your trying to hold them to a certain standard,” Earnshaw said. “I have pretty high expectations for the players. If you hold them to that standard and can communicate through that, and get them to aspire through that everyday, in the right manner, it sets them up for an opportunity for success.”
Earnshaw envisions that State’s women’s program will compete at the highest level in the near future.
“Absolutely we need to be in the tournament,” Earnshaw said. “We need to get up there in competing with UNC-Chapel Hill and Duke. We need to reach the top of the ACC.”
After the team endured an 8-14 overall record this past season, Earnshaw said he believes that the program has the potential to bounce back and be a dominant force in the ACC in the coming years.
