Manuel Diaz, Georgia, 2024

Manuel Diaz – the SEC’s all-time winningest coach with 767 career victories – led the Bulldogs to another conference championship and deep run in the NCAA tournament in 2023.

The legendary coach has guided Georgia to 29 SEC championships, four NCAA national titles (1999, 2001, 2007 and 2008), and two ITA indoor national championships in 36 years. He has been named SEC Coach of the Year on seven occasions and the ITA National Coach of the Year three times.

Most recently, the Bulldogs captured the SEC crown with a perfect 12-0 conference record on their way to the NCAA quarterfinals. Under Diaz’s guidance, redshirt-freshman Ethan Quinn became just the fourth rookie since 1977 to win the NCAA singles championship and the third Georgia player to accomplish the feat, joining the elite company of Mikael Pernfors and Matias Boeker.

Overall, Diaz’s teams have made 11 trips to the NCAA finals and 18 appearances in the NCAA semifinals round. His squads have also finished with an unblemished conference mark seven times.

From 2013-17, Georgia won five-straight SEC championships for the first time since 1971-75. The 2017 SEC Coach of the Year guided the Bulldogs to their second consecutive NCAA semifinals and 24th overall. Under his leadership, the top-ranked duo of Jan Zielinski and Robert Loeb earned All-America status after advancing all the way to the 2017 NCAA Doubles Championship match.

Diaz won the 600th match of his career against Alabama in April 2014, becoming just the 10th NCAA Division-I coach to reach that milestone.

Diaz led the Bulldogs to their second consecutive NCAA Championship in 2008. With six NCAA team championship titles in school history, Diaz has accounted for four of them as the head coach (1999, 2001, 2007, 2008), and he was also an assistant coach under Magill on both of the other winning squads (1985, ‘87).

From April 23, 2005, to March 19, 2010, Diaz coached the Dawgs to 71 straight wins at the Dan Magill Tennis Complex, the second-longest home winning streak in program history. Diaz led Georgia to 11 consecutive national top-five finishes from 1989 to 1999, a feat no other school in the country can match.

Diaz’s Bulldogs won the program’s first-ever triple crown of tennis in 2001, as the team won its second national title in three years, while Matias Boeker won the NCAA singles crown and teamed with Travis Parrott for the doubles’ championship. It was only the third time since 1977 that such a feat had been accomplished.

Diaz was named SEC Coach of the Year in 1989, 1995, 2001, 2006, 2007, 2017, and 2023. Under Diaz, Georgia has seen 39 players earn 77 All-America honors. Five Bulldogs have been four-year All-Americans: Mike Sell (1992-95), Jamie Laschinger (1993-96), Steven Baldas (1995-98), Bo Hodge (2001-04), and most recently John Isner (2004-07).

Diaz has a proven track record at developing players for their careers in college and beyond. After he was a four-time All-American at UGA, Isner has gone on to achieve a top-10 ATP world ranking. Diaz was involved in the development of 1984 and 1985 NCAA singles champion Mikael Pernfors, who also went on to reach an ATP top-10 ranking along with being a finalist in the 1986 French Open.

Diaz also coached Grand Slam champions Murphy Jensen (French Open doubles) and T.J. Middleton (Wimbledon mixed doubles) in addition to numerous players who were in or around the ATP top-100 in the world.

Diaz is a respected and honored leader in collegiate tennis, including being selected as the Wilson/ITA National Coach-of-the Year in 1995, 2001, and 2007. In 2000, he was inducted into the Georgia Tennis Hall of Fame. For his outstanding contribution to tennis in his home country of Puerto Rico, Diaz was inducted into the Puerto Rican Tennis Hall of Fame in 1998. In 2017, Diaz was inducted into the Georgia Sports Hall of Fame.

Diaz played at Georgia from 1972-75 and was a two-time All-American. He was named assistant coach in 1982, promoted to associate head coach in 1985, then head coach during the 1988-89 season.

A native of San Juan, Puerto Rico, Diaz is married to the former Suzanne Rondeau of Toronto, Canada. They have three sons: Manuel III, Eric, and Alex.

Highlights:

• Has compiled a 767-192 (.800) record in 36 years as the head men’s tennis coach at the University of Georgia.

• The all-time winningest coach in SEC history, just ahead of Bulldog legend Dan Magill.

• Led Georgia to six national championships and a remarkable 29 SEC titles.

• Named the ITA National Coach of the Year three times and the SEC Coach of the Year on seven occasions.

• Diaz’s teams have made 11 trips to the NCAA finals and 18 appearances in the NCAA semifinals round. His squads have also finished with an unblemished conference mark seven times.

• Played at Georgia from 1972-75 and was a two-time All-American. He was named assistant coach in 1982, promoted to associate head coach in 1985 and head coach during the 1988-89 season.

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Jane Preyer, North Carolina, 2024

Jane Preyer’s long and successful career was rooted in tennis glory and expanded into a dedication to volunteerism and environmental protection.

From winning two North Carolina junior state junior championships, to a collegiate All-American, to No. 43 world ranking, to an award-winning college coach and trail-blazing environmental career, Preyer has made her mark in many endeavors.

When she was a child, she was taught tennis by her mother, Emily. Later they were ranked No. 2 in the USTA mother/daughter rankings. In the early 1970s she won the North Carolina State Championships in Girls’ 18s singles and doubles and posted top-3 finishes in two national doubles tournaments.

Preyer’s longtime connection to the University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill began in 1973. She was an All-American and team captain in 1975-1976. She also earned a B.A. in English and a M.P.A. from the university.

From 1978-83 she played on the WTA Tour and rose to No. 43 in the world. She played twice at the US Open and Wimbledon, where she reached the round of 16. She also competed at the French Open and Australian Open.  She had wins over four top players from other countries who achieved top-5 rankings in the world: Evonne Goolagong, Manuela Maleeva, Sue Barker, and Betty Stove. She extended Billie Jean King to three sets at the Australian Open and competed for three sets against Chris Evert in US Open doubles.

When an elbow injury ended her pro career, she returned home to Greensboro, N.C., where she volunteered to coach Page High School, which won a state championship. She also served as a volunteer coach for UNC-Greensboro.

In 1985, she accepted the challenge to turn around a struggling Duke women’s team. Within two years, that team became, and remains today, a national powerhouse.  In her six-year tenure, Duke won four ACC championships, and she was named ACC Coach of the Year four times (1988-89, 1990-91). Her record was 120-45 for a 72.7 winning percentage.

In 1990, she was awarded the prestigious Community Service Award by the Intercollegiate Tennis Coaches Association and the USTA. The award honors coaches who have “contributed to community tennis development through volunteer and municipal programs.” Tennis greats Arthur Ashe and Stan Smith presented her with the award in a ceremony at the US Open in New York.

The North Carolina Tennis Hall of Fame inducted her in 1991.

Preyer is the former director of the Southeast office of Environmental Defense Fund (EDF). In that role, she was senior adviser for policy and political strategy on a broad range of issues and on fundraising. Her leadership helped pass some of the most effective environmental policies in North Carolina, including laws to reduce pollution from coal plants, address climate change impacts, reduce pollution in watersheds, and increased use of renewable energy and efficiency measures. She also managed EDF’s initiative with national companies to increase the use of environmentally preferable paper.

Currently, she serves on the boards of the National Health Law Program (NHeLP), Earthshare N.C., and NC Environmental Defense Fund. Former board service includes North Carolina Center for Nonprofits, Children’s Home Society of North Carolina, and UNC-Chapel Hill Institute for the Humanities.

In 2005, in honor of her mother, she and her siblings established the Emily Preyer Family Endowment at the North Carolina Tennis Foundation which assists kids with limited family incomes to attend college.

Preyer was nominated by USTA Southern Junior Competition Chair Debbie Southern. She extolled Preyer’s sportsmanship, writing, “Jane Preyer is the epitome of sportsmanship and character. Jane was my role model growing up in NC tennis. I was always impressed with her talents and skills as a tennis player but also her sportsmanship and character. Jane never put winning over integrity. Other players on the pro tour felt the same way about Jane. I can attest to the sportsmanship and character Jane instilled in her Duke teams as I coached against her during her career. Jane’s teams always fought hard and played with integrity and respect for their opponents. Jane instilled character and sportsmanship in all her young players!”

Highlights:

• Achieved a No. 43 world ranking.

• Played six years on WTA Tour, with two appearances at the US Open and Wimbledon.

• Defeated Evonne Goolagong, Manuela Maleeva, Sue Barker, and Betty Stove.

• Inducted into the North Carolina Tennis Hall of Fame in 1991.

• Her teams at Duke won four ACC Championships.

• Named ACC Coach of the Year four times in 1988, 1989, 1990, and 1991.

• Awarded the Community Service Award by the Intercollegiate Tennis Coaches Association and USTA.

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Keith Richardson, South Carolina & North Carolina, 2024

Keith Richardson, a native of Rock Hill, S.C., defeated Kevin Curren (twice), John Lloyd, Eliot Teltscher, and Eddie Dibbs in his four-year run on the ATP Tour. In 1977, he hit a career-high singles world ranking of No. 63 and No. 146 in doubles in 1979.

2001 was a notable year for Richardson as he was inducted into the South Carolina Tennis Hall of Fame and the North Carolina Tennis Hall of Fame. The following year he was honored by the York County (S.C.) Sports Hall of Fame.

Richardson showed great promise at 13 when he won the Palmetto Open in 1967 at Belton, SC. He also triumphed at the South Carolina Open and the South Carolina Closed in Columbia. Those results earned him the top ranking in South Carolina and was ranked No. 3 in the South during his final year in the juniors. He was the state’s 1971 4A South Carolina High School Champion while attending Rock Hill High School. Richardson has been ranked No. 1 in men’s singles in three states: South Carolina, North Carolina, and Georgia.

Appalachian State was where he played No. 1 in singles and doubles between 1971-75. He was a three-time Southern Conference singles and two-time doubles champion. He finished with a 109-11 record and was inducted into the Appalachian State University Athletic Hall of Fame in 1987. He graduated from the University’s Walker School of Business, BSBA, in 1975.

In 1977, Richardson captured the singles title at the WATCH Masters Tournament in Daytona Beach. At the Birmingham (Ala.) Classic, he downed Curren, Mansour Baharami, John Austin, and Southern Tennis Hall of Fame inductee Zan Guerry, taking all matches without losing a set. He played his first US Open that year.

Two years later, he captured the crown at the Tanglewood Classic in Winston-Salem, N.C., and was a doubles finalist with John James at the ATP Orange State Lumber Men’s Indoor, losing to Ilie Nastase and Steve Krulevitz. He advanced to the US Open third round that year before falling to Dick Stockton.

He served as Head Tennis Pro at the Benvenue Country Club in Rocky Mount, N.C., for three years and then moved into the Property & Casualty Insurance business. Additionally, he headed the North Carolina Association of Tennis Professionals as President and was selected as the North Carolina USPTA Tennis Pro of the Year in 1982.

He is an active senior player, competing in ITF and USTA 70 & over tournaments all over the United States. College tennis coaching legend Ron Smarr nominated Richardson and 2016 Southern Tennis Hall of Fame inductee Rex Maynard wrote of Richardson, “Keith was an outstanding junior, college, and professional player. He has had and continues to have success at every level and is an inductee of both the North and South Carolina Tennis Halls of Fame…I have always found him to be kind, helpful, and supportive of tennis.”

A resident of Charlotte, N.C., Richardson’s family includes his wife, Marilyn; brother, David; son-in-law Scott Andrews; daughter, Sarah Richardson Andrews; son Keith, Jr.; grandson, William Davis Andrews; granddaughter, Brice Elizabeth Andrews.

Highlights:

• Achieved a career-high ATP singles ranking of No. 63 and No. 146 in doubles.

• Inducted into these Halls of Fame: South Carolina, North Carolina, Appalachian State University Athletic Halls of Fame and the York County (S.C.) Sports Hall of Fame.

• Defeated Kevin Curren (twice), John Lloyd, Eliott Teltscher, and Eddie Dibbs while playing on the ATP Tour.

• Finished with a 109-11 record at Appalachian State. Named a “Legend” at Appalachian State, June, 2022.

• Three-time Southern Conference singles and two-time doubles champion.

• Headed the North Carolina Association of Tennis Professionals as President. Named USPTA North Carolina Tennis Pro of the Year in 1982.

• Named to the Southern Conference 100th Anniversary Tennis Team, 2021.

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