It has been a hectic past couple of weeks for the new Missouri Tigers tennis coach.
Whether it be enrolling her two daughters in school, meeting with her new players or relocating her family to Columbia, Sasha Schmid has had her hands full this summer. But the move-in process is almost complete, and Schmid is ecstatic to get to work on the task that brought her to mid-Missouri: improving MU tennis.
“I’m excited about the challenge I have here with this team,” Schmid said. “I feel energized by the task of reviving things here at Mizzou. There’s so much to be done on different fronts and I believe these girls can do it.”
Schmid has flourished throughout her tennis career. As a player, she was a four-year letter winner on the Iowa tennis team. She played at no. 1 and no. 2 singles, and was named the team’s Most Valuable Player her senior year.
As a coach, Schmid compiled a career record of 132-101 during her 10 years as coach at Stetson University in Florida. While there, Schmid coached 42 Atlantic Sun All-Academic honorees, 19 Intercollegiate Tennis Association-All America Academic Award winners, 20 Atlantic Sun All-Conference performers and 11 Atlantic Sun All-Freshmen Team selections.
Her 2006, 2007 and 2010 teams received the ITA All-Academic Team Award for having a collective GPA higher than 3.2, and her teams consistently produced high-ranking APR scores.
Moreso than anything else, Schmid preaches to her players to achieve excellence in everything.
“The girls have the internal motivation, which is integral,” Schmid said. “I want to provide an environment where they can grow both as people and as student athletes, without motivation on their part that wouldn’t happen.”
Schmid sees a bright future for MU tennis, despite the team losing two impact seniors, Kaitlyn Ritchie and Mallory Weber.
“There’s no doubt in my mind that (the team) can defeat some top teams,” Schmid said. “They showed last year that they have what it takes. Now they have to develop consistency.”
The Tigers will have a prime opportunity to showcase their abilities, as the program has been invited to participate in the ITA Kickoff Weekend for the first time in school history.
“It’s tremendous to be invited for the first time, and it’s a real attribute to the work the team did last year,” Schmid said. “This is something the girls can be proud of, and it shows we’re moving in the right direction. It’s an event we want to participate in annually.”
The ongoing renovation of the university’s tennis courts will be a key recruiting point for the new coach’s quest to lure top recruits to MU. Currently there are four outdoor courts, which in recent years have been ravaged by drainage issues. Those four are being re-done while two more courts are still to be added.