GREENEVILLE, Tenn. --- Tusculum University has named Tim Dunford as head men's and women's tennis coach, director of athletics Josh Ealy announced Wednesday.
Dunford comes to Tusculum after three seasons as director of tennis operations and head men's and women's tennis coach at Ashland University. While coaching the Eagles, Dunford had four men's and three women's All-Conference honorees along with the 2022 men's Freshman of the Year. He succeeds Matt Frost, who departed in May after two seasons with the Pioneers to become head men's tennis coach at UNC Asheville.
"We are very excited to welcome Tim to our Pioneer family," said Ealy. "Tim is a man of high character and faith that brings a wealth of experience at the collegiate level. Our student-athletes will benefit greatly from his passion and energy for the program. He will continue to build on Tusculum's history of success on the courts."
"I would like to thank Josh for this incredible opportunity," Dunford said. "The tennis programs at Tusculum have a long and rich history of being successful both on and off the court. With this opportunity, I look to not only continue the program's winning tradition, but to pioneer them to heights not yet seen. Becoming a part of the Tusculum University family is an absolute blessing and I am excited to get to work."
Prior to Ashland, Dunford was head coach at West Virginia Wesleyan for the 2020 season which was truncated due to the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. The Pembroke, Virginia native has coached at the Division II level for the past five seasons, starting with the 2019 campaign at King University, where he guided the Tornado men to a winning record and ITA Academic All-Region honors.
Dunford was the founding coach for programs at Brewton-Parker (2017-18) and Thiel (2011-13), leading Brewton-Parker's men to a six-win improvement from year one to year two and the Thiel men from two to 14 victories over three seasons. While at Brewton-Parker, Dunford's 2018 men's squad received an at-large bid to the NCCAA National Championship tournament.
Dunford spent a total of six seasons coaching Division III tennis, with stops at Wooster (2014) and Albion (2015-16) following his tenure at Thiel. Dunford was the men's coach at Wooster and guided the team to 10 victories in his only season, and followed up by boosting the win total for the Albion women from three to 10 over his two years.
Dunford, who earned a master's degree in coaching and athletics administration from Concordia-Irvine in 2017, received a bachelor's degree in sports administration from Shenandoah in 2005. Dunford is qualified to teach kinesiology classes and has taught tennis, wellness and sport management classes in addition to his coaching duties.
The Tusculum men and women each earned berths to the NCAA Division II Tennis Championship during the 2023 season, with the Pioneer men finishing the year ranked 28th and the women 21st by the ITA. The Tusculum women shared the South Atlantic Conference regular-season championship with Wingate while the men took second place in the SAC, and each ended the year with 17-7 overall records.
What they are saying about Tim Dunford:
Adam Jackson, former head men's and women's tennis coach, Tusculum:
"I think Tim is the perfect addition to the Tusculum staff, and will carry on the winning legacy of both the men's and women's programs. Tim is a veteran leader, and I could not be happier for him and for Tusculum."
Jim Thompson, head men's tennis coach, Virginia Tech:
"Congratulations to both Tim Dunford and Tusculum University on his hiring. Tim is a dedicated, hardworking coach who is extremely passionate about tennis and his players. He will help guide the program at Tusculum in a very positive way."
Brandon Padgett, director of athletics, Penn State Shenango:
"Tusculum has found a man with determination, integrity, and passion to lead its tennis programs. Tim has the innate ability to draw people in, which makes his ability to recruit and fundraise exceptional. More importantly though, there is nothing fake or misleading about Tim. What you see is exactly what you get, and his passion is infectious."
