Newly hired Men’s Tennis Team Assistant Coach Mitch Hallum said he wants to make some noise in the Western Athletic Conference.
UTRGV welcomed Hallum Sept. 19.
He graduated from the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor in 2016, where he earned the All-Conference honors in doubles with the men’s tennis team, according to goutrgv.com.
Hallum, who has been an assistant director at Mac 360 Tennis Academy and counselor at the Texas A&M University Tennis Camp, believes he can bring a “fresh set of eyes” to the team.
“Now there’s two coaches that can move from court to court,” Hallum said. “It allows us to be a little more creative in practice. … It brings a new level of intensity, some energy and a fresh look at what’s going on with the team, which in tennis is big “cause it’s very technically driven.”
Hallum said he has individual goals for UTRGV.
“Personally, I like to help some of the guys get those All-Conference honors and improve on the record as a team from last year, and, hopefully, make some noise here in the WAC,” he said.
Sophomore Georgije Babic said Hallum has brought new motivation to the UTRGV Men’s Tennis Team.
“Having a secondary coach helps the team because one coach doesn’t have to take care of everyone,” Babic said. “We can spread out and do more specific things, which is obviously valuable for the team going forward.”
Head Coach Dann Nelson said Hallum has made a huge impact on the program.
“It’s really nice to be able to split the work up and delegate some duties and really get to work more with our team,” Nelson said. “Get to do more now than what we have in the past. So, I’m really excited about having Coach Mitch here.”
Next, the tennis team will compete at the Intercollegiate Tennis Association Regionals beginning Oct. 25 in Waco.
