Game, Set, Match: Pitt-Greensburg Tennis Coach Doug Smeltzer Serves Up Insights On and Off the Court

The UPG men’s and women’s tennis seasons are underway and “The Insider” sent reporter Locklin Newman to talk with head coach Doug Smeltzer about his expectations and challenges for the season. Coach Smeltzer is the head coach of both teams. 

LN: Could you give us any insight into how the teams are doing overall?

Coach Smeltzer: The men’s and women’s teams are definitely in different places right now. For the men’s team, I am hoping to improve our record from a year ago and qualify for the joint AMCC/Atlantic East tournament. For the women, my first goal was to win our third straight conference title (which we did this past Sunday). The ultimate goal, however, is to win a match during the NCAA tournament. This is the third time that the current senior class will be playing in the NCAA tournament so I think it would be a great way to close out their careers.

LN: So what’s  the day-to-day schedule like for these athletes? 

Coach Smeltzer: Generally speaking, I like to keep the day as normal as possible for our athletes. We usually practice from 8-9:30 p.m. so the majority of their day looks pretty normal. Match days are all a little bit different depending on how far we have to travel and what time the match is.

LN: The schedule both teams face is a long one, with 15-18 matches taking place within the season. Which matchups are you anticipating the most? 

Coach Smeltzer: Without a doubt, Penn-State Behrend was our biggest test for the women this year. We have played them in each of the last four AMCC Championship matches, and they seem to always save their best tennis for when they play us. We were fortunate enough to beat them in the regular season and conference title match again this year. I am really looking forward to the men’s matchup with Mount Aloysius. I thought we squandered some chances to beat them last year and I think we have made the necessary improvements to beat them this year in what I expect to be a close, hard-fought match. For the women, I am looking forward to whatever team we get matched up with for the NCAA tournament. Breaking through to the second round is just about the last box to check for this senior class and I would love to see it happen for them.

LN: What improvements would you like to see both teams make going forward?

Coach Smeltzer: While there are always things to improve upon, we are coming off about as close to a perfect season as you can get for the women’s team. With that said, I am hoping for some of our younger players to step up and make big contributions for us in the spring. We are losing several key players after this year so I need to see who will make an impact for us moving forward. For the men’s team, I am looking for some mental toughness to win close matches. I believe we will be much more competitive than last year so it will take some fortitude to push through and really make some noise in the conference.

LN: With the seniors entering their final season, and new freshmen players starting their collegiate careers, what are your expectations for the standout star athletes? 

Coach Smeltzer: On the women’s side I got great performances from all of our seniors this fall. With a couple of fall graduates, I will be looking for some big spring contributions from sophomore Eden Richey and freshman Devon Ulmer. Devon broke through and made the starting lineup in about half of our matches and played really well. I’m hoping she can build on that success in the spring. For the men, I am looking for big things from Senior and Captain Deven Summers. He has made big improvements each year and I think this might be the year he leads us to our best season since we finished as runners-up in the conference in 2021.

LN: As head coach of both teams, I imagine you deal with a lot of challenges every day. What have been some of your greatest challenges this year? 

Coach Smeltzer: One of the biggest challenges is managing a larger number of student athletes with limited resources in terms of practice space and time. I try really hard to prepare both teams for what they have in front of them which can be difficult to balance when the goals for each team may be a bit different.

LN: What are the strengths of both teams this year?

Coach Smeltzer: Both of our teams are highly motivated for success and a lot of it has to do with strong leadership. Our captains (Emily Ruhlman and Cathryn Rossi for the women and Deven Summers for the men) have really helped by demanding a lot from their teammates. What separates our current women’s team from any other that I’ve coached is how well they push each other to be better. There are a lot of good teammates in the group, and they prepare with great intensity at practice. Everyone seems to be content with their role but they still always push to make themselves and their teammates better every day. Complacency can ruin good teams, but this group pushes every single time they hit the court to keep moving forward. My coaching philosophy is to prepare with humility and perform with confidence, and this group executes that at a very high level. 

LN: As a Pitt-Greensburg alum, what do you find most rewarding about coaching at Pitt-Greensburg?

Coach Smeltzer: I love seeing the successes of my student athletes, both on and off the court. It wasn’t all that long ago that I was playing here going through a lot of the same things that they do, so I know the work that it takes to accomplish what they do. I always say that my goal is ultimately to make their college and life experience better by having been a part of my program. When I can look back at a player’s career and feel like I achieved that, it is a really great feeling.

Pitt-Greensburg’s tennis home matches are played at the Greensburg Racquet Club, about eight minutes from campus. Matches are free to attend. With 15-18 matches a season, there are plenty of opportunities to catch the teams in action.