EDINBURG - The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) Department of Intercollegiate Athletics announced on Thursday the hiring of Stephanie Wooten-Quijada as the new women's tennis head coach.
"We're thrilled to hire someone of Stephanie's caliber," UTRGV Director of Athletics Chris King said. "She has a solid coaching background in the state of Texas and was an extremely successful player at Purdue in the Big Ten Conference. Most importantly, she showed great enthusiasm and excitement for becoming the head coach of the UTRGV women's program. Her energy and passion for college tennis was evident from the start of the search process. She is committed to individual player development and team success on and off the court."
Wooten-Quijada spent last year as one of the tennis professionals at Brookhaven Country Club in Dallas, where she was part of one of the highest rated private tennis programs in the country. Brookhaven Country Club is known for producing high-caliber athletes across several sports, including golf star Jordan Spieth.
Wooten-Quijada was the assistant coach at the University of Houston in 2013-14, helping the Cougars to a 21-6 record and a spot in the NCAA Tournament.
Prior to that, Wooten-Quijada spent two seasons at Stephen F. Austin (SFA), including the last year as the head coach. She helped SFA to a combined 33-18 record, including a 15-6 mark in Southland Conference play.
As an assistant coach in her first season at SFA, Wooten-Quijada helped guide the program to its first Southland Conference Championship an NCAA Tournament appearance, the No. 35 ranking in the nation, and a 23-4 record.
Prior to her arrival at SFA, Wooten was the head coach at Lee College, where she led the program to a runner-up finish at the 2011 NJCAA Championships. She also helped develop three NJCAA Division I All-Americans that season.
Wooten-Quijada was a four-year letter winner at Purdue where she finished her career with a combined 116 victories. As a senior, she recorded 41 victories while finishing sixth on Purdue's all-time doubles victories list.
"I am extremely grateful to Chris King for giving me this opportunity," Wooten-Quijada said. "I look forward to mentoring this fine group of young ladies to grow and develop on and off the court. I am excited to be a part of the UTRGV family."
A native of Crandall, Texas, Wooten-Quijada, comes to the Rio Grande Valley with her husband, Andrés Quijada, who coached and trained at the Venezuelan Tennis Federation. Quijada was also a red-shirt for the Venezuelan Davis Cup team.
WHAT THEY'RE SAYING ABOUT STEPHANIE WOOTEN-QUIJADA
DeJuena Chizer, University of Houston Senior Associate AD/Senior Women's Administrator
I am truly happy for Stephanie. UTRGV is getting a good addition to their family, a very good coach and someone who will make great things happen on the tennis courts. The student-athletes will lover her.
Laura Glitz, Purdue University head coach
Stephanie was one of the purest ball strikers to play for Purdue Tennis. She was a tenacious competitor and brought a lot of energy to the courts when she played. I believe she will bring those qualities with her as a coach. The team at UTRGV will benefit from her expertise and experience competing at a high level.
Erica Perkins Jasper, COO of Intercollegiate Tennis Association
I have had the pleasure of coaching against Stephanie when she was a player at Purdue and also when she was an assistant coach at Houston. She was a smart, fiery competitor and that has translated well into her coaching career. She is a high-energy coach. Stephanie gets a lot out of her players, has great work ethic, and it is clear to me that she is truly motivated to become a great college coach.
Mat Iandolo, University of Utah head coach
I am very proud of Stephanie. I was her coach at Purdue and recruited her when she was the top high school player in Texas. Stephanie has a dynamic personality and readily endears herself to those around her. You want to play hard for her because she gives you her heart and soul everyday. Stephanie is a Texan thru and thru and will build the UTRGV program with pride.
Joey Scrivano, Baylor University head coach
Stephanie has done a great job everywhere she has coached. She's a special person and a terrific young coach. The student-athletes that work with her can see her dedication, they see her integrity and that she cares for them beyond tennis. UTRGV has made an outstanding hire.