Tennessee women’s tennis head coach Alison Ojeda received a contract extension Thursday, extending her tenure as head coach through the 2028-29 season.
Ojeda was named the 2024 National ITA Wilson Coach of the Year following Tennessee’s qualification to the Final Four for the first time since 2002, when Ojeda was a player. The Lady Vols finished the season ranked No. 12, the highest season-ending ranking in 14 years.
“Every day is a great day to be on Rocky Top,” Ojeda said in a press release. “I have been feeling that since I was an 18-year-old freshman at UT back in 2002 and 22 years later, I feel it more than ever. Winning matters. Not just on the scoreboard, but every day in life too.”
Two members of Tennessee’s team last year, Sofia Cabezas and Elza Tomase, were named ITA All-Americans following last season, bringing Ojeda’s total number of All-Americans in her coaching career to four.
During Tennessee’s run last season, the Lady Vols defeated No. 1 Oklahoma State in the Super Regional, ending the Cowgirls’ 29-match winning streak. As the No. 16 seed, the Lady Vols were the lowest seed to reach the national semifinals since the NCAA Tournamnet expanded to 64 teams in 1999.
Ojeda sports a career record of 143-68 as Tennessee head coach and has advanced to the NCAA Tournament seven times. The 2024 season was the first in which an Ojeda-coached team advanced past the Super Regional round of the NCAA Tournament.
As a player, Ojeda earned more than 100 victories in both singles and doubles and is only one of four Tennessee players to do so. She was a two-time All-SEC performer for the Lady Vols and earned All-America honors during her junior season.
“Our women’s tennis program has continued to show phenomenal growth under Alison’s leadership,” athletic director Danny White said in a press release. “It’s remarkable that in our history, we have been to two Final Fours — the first with Alison as a player and the most recent historic run last season as a coach — she really is the embodiment of a Lady Vol!”
