GREENSBORO, N.C. – Guilford College Athletic Director Tom Palombo tabbed
veteran instructor and coach Dave McCain as the Quakers’ new head men’s and
women’s tennis coach Thursday. McCain spent the previous five years coaching
both tennis teams at neighboring Greensboro College. He also serves as
director of tennis at the Precision Golf School and Tennis Academy in
Greensboro.
McCain guided Greensboro’s women’s team to a 38-50 overall mark in five
seasons and ranks third among the school’s all-time coaching wins leaders.
He coached Carrie Pacifico, a three-time USA South Athletic Conference
Player of the Year and two-time *ESPN The Magazine*/CoSIDA Academic
All-American. Four Pride students combined to win seven all-conference
honors in his five seasons, including Michelle Lemmons, also a two-time *ESPN
The Magazine*/CoSIDA Academic All-American.
As a men’s coach, McCain is 33-57 in seven seasons, which includes two years
as mentor of Sangamon State (Ill.) College from 1980-82. His 21 coaching
victories at Greensboro stand second in school history. He directed the
Pride’s David Sutton, the 2007 USA South Player of the Year and a two-time
First Team *ESPN The Magazine*/CoSIDA Academic All-American. McCain made his
coaching debut at Sangamon State (now the University of
Illinois-Springfield) where he coached the school’s first two men’s tennis
teams and garnered NAIA District 20 Coach of the Year recognition both
seasons.
The bulk of McCain’s 43 years of coaching experience has come through
personal instruction of both juniors and adults on the national and
international levels. His students have won 12 United States Tennis
Association (USTA) gold balls, earned over $6 million in college tennis
scholarships and captured USTA national junior indoor and clay court titles.
One of McCain’s top students, his daughter, Kelly, was the top-ranked NCAA
Division I player and a two-time All-American for Duke University. She later
embarked on a two-year stint on the Sony Ericsson WTA Tour and reached a
#119 world ranking. McCain was an assistant coach for Duke’s 2009 NCAA
championship team and now works with her father at Precision.
Dave McCain also coached Mary Lou Piatek-Daniels, who achieved a #15 ranking
on the WTA Tour and captured two singles and 11 doubles crowns as a
professional.
McCain’s son, Dan, played collegiately for the University of Michigan where
he was ranked as high as 18th in the nation. Dan is the head women’s tennis
coach at California State University Bakersfield.
Before moving to Greensboro, Dave McCain worked with aspiring tour
professionals at the IFPA Tennis & Fitness Academy in Tampa, Fla. He served
three years as the Academy Managing Director for the Saddlebrook
International Tennis program in Wesley Chapel, Fla., where he designed
personalized tennis training, fitness and tournament preparation for
developing players. McCain also ran the McCain International Tennis Academy
in St. Petersburg, Fla., home to 30 sectionally and nationally ranked
juniors.
McCain, who started playing tennis when he was eight, lives in Greensboro
with his wife, Sue. Sue played college tennis at Southern Illinois
University and coached the women’s team at Sangamon State.
Dave Walters
Guilford College Athletics