Rice University Athletics
Roger White Resigns as Rice Women's Tennis Coach
8/1/2008 12:00:00 AM | Women's Tennis
Aug. 1, 2008
Rice Athletics Director Chris Del Conte announced Friday that women's tennis coach Roger White has resigned his position to pursue new career opportunities.
"We are very thankful for Coach White's commitment to the program the previous ten years," Del Conte said. "He is a wonderful individual who has given much of his time and enthusiasm to advancing the program to where it is today. We wish him all the best in his new endeavors."
"It has been my great privilege to work for Rice University," White said. "I will leave here with memories and experiences that will be cherished by me and my family (wife Suzanne, son Christopher and daughter Laura) for a lifetime."
White came to Rice as an assistant coach in 1998 and took the helm of the program in June 2001. He compiled a career dual match record of 86-84 in his seven seasons and led the Owls to an NCAA tournament appearance in 2006.
Among his most notable victories were wins over No. 23 LSU (2005), No. 40 Minnesota (2004), No. 40 SMU (2008), No. 44 Alabama (2008), and No. 47 Purdue (2004).
Rice finished the 2008 season with a 17-5 record, their highest win total since 1983. Dominique Karas and Julie Chao notched All-Conference USA First-Team singles and Third-Team doubles honors as selected by the league's head coaches.
White was twice honored as conference coach of the year, winning the award in the WAC (2005) and C-USA (2006). He guided the seventh-seeded Owls to the school's first team title as a member of C-USA.
Rice defeated the top three seeds in the tournament on the way to claiming the crown and the league's automatic bid to the NCAA championship. Blair DiSesa was named the C-USA Player of the Year and received Rice's first NCAA singles bid in 20 years. The Owls' Alanna Rodgers also was honored for her stellar play in Dallas, receiving "Outstanding Singles Player of the C-USA Championship" recognition from the league coaches. Joining DiSesa in receiving All-Conference honors were Christine Dao (Second Team), Medeja Egic (Second Team), and Tiffany Lee (Third Team).
White's teams also continued the long-standing tradition of academic excellence. The Owls were honored for nine consecutive years by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association as a team for their performance in the classroom, while 20 players earned 32 individual academic honors. Dominique Karas was named to the 2008 ESPN The Magazine Academic At-Large All-District VI Second-Team, while Julie Chao earned Conference USA All-Academic honors.
In addition to his coaching duties at Rice, White was an instructor in the Rice Recreation Department's Lifetime Physical Activity Program for six years and was the first instructor to win two Frank W. Bearden Awards for Teaching Excellence (2002, 2007). The honor is voted upon by students in the program to honor an instructor who surpasses the ordinary demands of teaching to inspire, support and encourage students to become physically active.
Prior to joining the Owls, White was the assistant head tennis professional at the Houston Country Club after holding the position of director of tennis at Atascocita Country Club (1989-96). He began his career as head teaching professional at Kingwood Country Club in 1986, and in 1988 moved to Walden Golf and Country Club, where he served as director of tennis and racquet sports for two years.
White earned all-America honors as a collegian at Abilene Christian for the 1986 season, in which he was ranked as high as No. 2 in doubles and No. 23 in singles nationally by the Intercollegiate Tennis Coaches Association.
Players Mentioned
