Sports Tennis

For first-time head coach, Houston is a welcome challenge

Debi Despoina Vogasari

Junior Despoina Vogasari was a leader for the Cougars last season, and Steinbock will be counting on her to lead the way again this season. | Courtesy of UH Athletics

As the tennis team welcomes in the new semester, they’ll have more than just professors to get to know.

Courtney Steinbock, a former assistant coach with Oklahoma State University, was hired this summer to take the place of the departed head coach Patrick Sullivan.

“I think this was a good opportunity for me, I had a couple opportunities throughout the last couple of years of being a head coach and I’ve kind of been pretty particular where I wanted to be,” Steinbock said. “This was a good opportunity for me to take over a really good team in my first head coaching job.”

Steinbock left a successful tennis program at Oklahoma State as an assistant coach where she helped lead the Cowgirls to one of their best seasons in school history finishing 23-6.

She will be filling in the shoes of Sullivan, who led the Cougars to their first NCAA Tournament berth since 1998 and set a school record with an 18-game winning streak.

“As far as pressure,” Steinbock said. “ We put pressure on ourselves every day as coaches and these athletes are going to put more pressure on themselves than we probably will.”

Chris Young, director of tennis and head coach at Oklahoma State, is confident that Steinbock will be a perfect fit for Houston.

“I am excited for Courtney to have the opportunity to lead her own program at a great university,” Young said. “Courtney made great contributions to our program and I know she will help continue to grow the program at Houston.”

One of the first things on Steinbock’s agenda is working with the team and making any changes to their game as well as establishing their identity.

Growing up around a lot of guys, Steinbock says that toughness is a trait that she had to pick up and hopes to instill it into her team.

“It’s just a different culture around here. We kind of want to be the Ronda Rousey of tennis when it comes to the preparation and the mindset,” Steinbock said. “This team already has the reputation of being tough as nails…so I think it’s just all of those little things, creating that culture and creating that identity for UH women’s tennis.”

Associate head tennis coach at Cleveland State University Frank Polito says Steinbock brings work ethic, passion and positive energy to UH.

“She was a young lady working her way into the coaching ranks who just wanted to learn as much about college tennis as she can,” Polito said. “I miss the days of planning practice, going over scouting notes and talking strategy during matches with her, she has a good eye and can pick up a players weakness very quickly.”

Young mentioned that one of the strongest assets that Steinbock brings to Houston is her work ethic.

“She loves being on the court with the girls and she will do a great job of helping the girls develop and create a fun environment for them to have a great student athlete experience,” Young said.

She’s also been called a relentless recruiter by her former colleagues and Steinbock has not missed a beat.

“We just got back from two recruiting trips and we’re constantly on the hunt for kids that are just tough kids who just love the game and are ready to get better and love the grind,” Steinbock said. “Maybe they’re not the flashiest or they don’t have the best ranking, but those kids that are really passionate about tennis and want to continue to improve and can show that they can compete with some of the best.”

As far as the pressure to take over a successful program in her first head coaching job, Steinbock says it’s normal.

“At the end of the day we’re not so concerned about the wins and losses, it’s just going to be about the process and,” Steinbock said. “How we go about reaching those goals and attaining those, I think if we do a good job taking care of the details and being very specific in what we do I think the wins and losses will take care of itself.”

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